Dodgers Promoting Cody Bellinger: Fantasy Impact

By Bill Pivetz | Apr 25, 2017

Nov 5, 2016; Surprise, AZ, USA; West infielder Cody Bellinger of the Los Angeles Dodgers during the Arizona Fall League Fall Stars game at Surprise Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

With the injury to Joc Pederson and struggles by Adrian Gonzalez, the Dodgers decided to promote top prospect, Cody Bellinger. What is his fantasy impact?

The Los Angeles Dodgers pulled the trigger first on calling up a top prospect this season. According to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, the Dodgers will call up first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger on Tuesday. With the injury to outfielder Joc Pederson, he is starting in left field for Tuesday’s game and will also see time in center field.

Bellinger quickly climbed the ranks in the Dodgers farm system. He spent 2015 in Single-A. He then spent most of 2016 in Double-A before moving up to Triple-A for three games. Bellinger is still in Triple-A. In 114 AA games, he hit .263 with 23 home runs, 65 RBI and 61 runs scored. He also stole eight bases and had a .359 on-base percentage.

In his 18 Triple-A games this year, Bellinger has a .343/.429/.627 line with five home runs, 15 RBI, 15 runs and a 22:9 K:BB ratio. With the lack of production from the current Dodgers offense, Bellinger could provide a much-needed spark. Pederson and Andrew Toles are both hitting .220 in their 18 games.

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Pederson is out with a groin injury. Jeff Todd of MLBTradeRumors says he may not be out long.

"It doesn’t seem likely to keep him out for a lengthy stretch, but the Dodgers evidently felt it was worth getting out ahead of with a DL placement."

While he may be back in two weeks, Bellinger could steal the job from him, or Toles, in the next 10 days.

If that doesn’t happen, Bellinger could move over to first base in place of Adrian Gonzalez. Bellinger played 282 games at first base in the minors and owns a .991 fielding percentage. Gonzalez isn’t hitting as badly as Pederson or Toles, but he’s not the same hitter he once was.

In 2014 and 2015, Gonzalez hit 55 home runs, 206 RBI and .275. Last season, he hit 18 home runs and 90 RBI with a .285 average. So far this season, Gonzalez is hitting .266 with no homers and just eight RBI.

At 35 years old, Gonzalez is definitely past his prime. This could be the opportunity the Dodgers have been looking for as they look towards the future. They both bat left so a platoon is out of the question, but maybe Gonzalez gets an extra day off each week.

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Bellinger is already owned in 4.2 percent of ESPN leagues, mostly dynasty leagues. With this announcement, I expect his ownership to go up another 10 percent. Something to note, though, is that he only has first base eligibility. He will gain outfield eligibility after 10 games.

Until then, I wouldn’t make any drastic moves to add Bellinger. But if you have a player on your bench you haven’t start yet, then this is an easy move.

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