The hottest topic in Major League Baseball this summer is the Ohtani trade.
Would the Los Angeles Angels give up one of the greatest baseball players of all time? The Los Angeles Dodgers and other teams have been mentioned as possible suitors, but it’s hard to predict the outcome as the Angels have rekindled their fall baseball hopes with a second-half comeback to within five wins.
After all, it’s not out of the realm of possibility that owner Art Moreno will stick around until the end of the season. This could end up being a lot of rumors and speculation with no substance.
After Ohtani, the next player to get a lot of attention is Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger. Bellinger was released by the Dodgers as a non-tender last winter, making him a free agent, and signed a one-year deal with the Cubs. He makes $12 million this year and has a $12 million mutual option for a $5.5 million buyout next year. This means he can become a free agent of his own volition.바카라사이트
Bellinger injured his left knee on May 16 against the Houston Astros and spent a month on the disabled list before returning on June 16. It took him a week to adjust, but he’s been swinging a bat since July.
On July 22, Bellinger started in the No. 4 spot in the lineup against the St. Louis Cardinals at Wrigley Field and went 3-for-4 with a home run, two RBIs and one run scored in a 4-3 victory.
In 17 games in July, he is batting .462 (30-for-65) with six home runs, 15 RBI, 17 runs scored and a 1.293 OPS. While we won’t know the exact rankings until the end of the month, his July batting average, on-base percentage, and OPS are all likely to lead the majors.
The Cubs, on the other hand, will have a tough time making the playoffs this season unless they have a breakthrough season. Today’s win improved their record to 46-51, but they remain eight games behind the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers and 6.5 games behind the third wild-card spot, the Philadelphia Phillies. Fangraphs gives the Cubs a 7.3% chance of making the playoffs.
Clearly, the Cubs are a seller in the trade market, and Bellinger is a target. After the game, MLB.com wrote: “Bellinger’s future with the Cubs is a question mark with the trade deadline less than two weeks away. Prospects and rumors abound, but the former MVP is coming off his best month of the year.
St. Louis Cardinals’ Tyler O’Neill steals third base after being walked in the eighth inning. AFP
Bellinger doubled in his first at-bat in the bottom of the second inning, trailing 1-0. He took a 92.9-mph fastball from starter Jack Flaherty and crushed a line drive to right-center field, but he didn’t advance any further after a bad at-bat.
He followed with a two-run homer in the bottom of the third. After a leadoff single by Miles Mastrovoni and a double by Mike Tuckman made it 2-1, the Cubs had runners on second and third. Bellinger then stepped up to the plate for the second time in as many at-bats and hit a towering two-run shot to make it 4-1. He lined a 77-mph fastball from Flaherty over the right field wall. It was his 13th home run of the season with a 32-degree launch angle, 103.7 mph bat speed and 400 feet of travel.
He followed with a two-run single to left in the fifth and a grounder to second in the seventh. He was one out shy of his second career cycle hit.
Cubs left-hander Justin Steele pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on six hits and one walk with nine strikeouts to improve to 10-3 on the season.