NEWSLETTER
So much for all those words of optimism and negative X-rays. After colliding with the outfield wall last night, Cody Bellinger fractured his rib (Update: It’s actually TWO fractured right ribs) and will hit the injured list today. Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell just said as much on 670 The Score.
Cody Bellinger to the IL
I wasn’t listening live, but from the sounds of it, a CT scan today revealed a fracture that the X-rays didn’t catch last night. So now, Cody Bellinger becomes the latest in a long list of critical Cubs players to catch a stint on the IL: Jameson Taillon, Justin Steele, Kyle Hendricks, Drew Smyly, Julian Merryweather, Seiya Suzuki, Patrick Wisdom, and Nick Madrigal have all spent time on the IL this year, and Ian Happ has missed a little time both in Spring Training and during the season, as well.
But losing Cody Bellinger is especially painful, not only because he’s been very good, but also because the Cubs are already rolling with one of their backup outfielders on an everyday basis. And while Mike Tauchman is performing as well as you could possibly hope, he’s not Seiya Suzuki and he’s not Cody Bellinger. And of course, none of the Cubs other bench options are quite as steady and productive as he is.
And I’m sure you’ve noticed, but Bellinger had really started to take off offensively, extending his hitting streak to eight games last night with his fifth homer of the year and third in his last five games. So it’s a brutal time to lose him, in isolation, and it’s rougher still because of Seiya Suzuki’s absence … to say nothing of what an injury like this might do to his expected performance when he does return.
In the meantime, the Chicago Cubs top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong is being promoted to the big leagues. And while his defensive impact will be felt immediately — indeed, he’s one of the few players who’s a defensive UPGRADE over Cody Bellinger in center field — he is probably not ready yet offensively. More on his promotion right here.
In the meantime, note that Craig Counsell seemingly did not have a good sense of when Bellinger could return, and the best I can find online (knowing nothing at all about this injury in parituclar) is between 4-12 weeks. But a fracture is a fracture, and there’s not much you can do to accelerate that process.
Here’s a look at that play, again:
Cody Bellinger exited the game after this play.
— Cubs Zone (@CubsZone) April 24, 2024
(📸: @WatchMarquee) pic.twitter.com/RKwPc5P4Bi
And him in the dugout thereafter:
Cody Bellinger left today's game early. pic.twitter.com/JeG5pJkqxH
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) April 24, 2024
