Cody Bellinger has had a hell of a rookie season for the Dodgers, and if not for Aaron Judge, he’d probably be getting a lot more press. (Unfortunately for Bellinger, Judge casts a gigantic shadow, both literally and metaphorically.)
As it is, Bellinger has had to settle for merely minor adulation, but there’s no denying his impact on the Dodgers; he’s already been worth 2.3 fWAR, and clubbed his 26th home run last night at Marlins Park.
But it’s what came after that homer that made his evening more interesting. Bellinger ended up hitting for the cycle, completing it with a triple in the seventh inning:
CYCLE.@Cody_Bellinger becomes the first Dodgers rookie to hit for the cycle. Congrats, Cody! 👏 #LetsGoDodgers pic.twitter.com/4qEqJ2xmsG
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 16, 2017
Now, a cycle is a very arbitrary accomplishment, but it is still memorable; a feat that is easy to track and remember, and it does require four hits, including a homer and two more extra base knocks. Obviously other games like, say, two home runs and two doubles, are more valuable, but if you see a cycle, you tend to remember it. Cycles are fun.
Kudos to Bellinger, and with skills like he possesses, it’s hard to imagine he won’t have plenty more games like this in the future, cycle or not.
