PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Cody Bellinger had a night for the ages.
His young daughters sat next to him and his father watched from the back of the room as he spoke about winning the All-Star Game's Most Valuable Player award.
“Just being able to hang out and watching him win an award, it’s pretty cool," former Yankee Clay Bellinger said after his son's two-run single in the first inning off Cristopher Sánchez started the American League to a 4-0 win on Tuesday
night.
Cody re-signed with the Yankees last winter for a $162.5 million, five-year deal and he has been a key part of the offense. He was hitting .280 through mid-June before a slump dropped his average to .254 heading into the All-Star break. Bellinger hasn't homered in a month.
“Baseball is the craziest game in the world. It really is. Sometimes it’s unexplainable," he said. “Going into the break, I actually was feeling pretty good. I felt like I was on the right track.”
Clay Bellinger was an outfielder and infielder for the Yankees from 1999 to 2001, winning a pair of World Series titles, then finished his big league career with the Anaheim Angels in 2002.
Cody was 5 when his dad won his second World Series title. Clay never imagined the player Cody would turn into.
“I knew he was good, but not this good,” Clay said.
Cody became the fourth Yankees player to win the All-Star Game MVP after Derek Jeter (2000), Mariano Rivera (2013) and Giancarlo Stanton (2022).
“Wearing this jersey — I feel proud wearing it," he said. “It comes with a lot.”
Bellinger, who turned 31 on Monday, was a fourth-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2013 and made the All-Star team in 2017, when he was voted NL Rookie of the Year. He hit 47 homers in 2019 and was voted the NL MVP after making his second All-Star team.
“I was, like, `Oh, I’ll be here every year,'" he said. “It took a long time to get back. It’s such a competitive league.”
He followed with three straight subpar seasons, missing time in 2021 because of calf, hamstring and rib injuries. He was cut after the 2022 season and signed a $17.5 million, one-year deal with the Cubs.
Bellinger hit a career-high .307 with 29 homers and 97 RBIs, became a free agent again and signed an $80 million, three-year contract with the Cubs. After a subpar, injury-slowed season, he was dealt to the Yankees.
He tested the free-agent market, then decided to stay in pinstripes.
“He loves it there,” Clay said. “He loves the teammates, loves the city, loves playing in Yankee Stadium. So, it was kind of a no-brainer.”
Daughters Caiden and Cy accompanied Cody onto the field along with his wife, Chase, for photos after he received his award from Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt.
“You always hope for your kids to do well, whether or not it’s playing baseball or doing whatever they like to do,” Clay said. “He’s been pretty good at it for quite a long time.”
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