Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger is expected to start a minor league rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday in Des Moines.
Bellinger has not played for the Cubs since suffering a left knee contusion while making a catch at the outfield fence May 15 in a loss to the Houston Astros. He was placed on the 10-day injured list on May 19, retroactive to May 16.
Cubs manager David Ross told Chicago radio station AM 670 The Score’s Bernstein & Holmes Show that Bellinger should play Tuesday.
“Cody is one of those guys, his mentality in the dugout, the way he carries himself, his presence in the locker room, there’s just so much to like about him,” Ross said on the radio program. “Yeah, we miss him, but hopefully we get him back real soon.”
Bellinger was batting .271 with seven home runs, 20 RBIs, a .337 on-base percentage and a .493 slugging percentage in 37 games for the Cubs.
The 27-year-old was National League MVP for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2019 before struggling the following three seasons. He bottomed out with a .165 average in 2021 and hit .210 last season.
A two-time All-Star and the 2017 NL Rookie of the Year, Bellinger played six seasons with the Dodgers before joining the Cubs on a one-year, $17.5 million deal in the offseason.
–Field Level Media