The best Cody Bellinger player props for 2021

Cody Bellinger is one of the most recognizable and exciting players in baseball. He took Los Angeles by storm in 2017, when he won Rookie of the Year honors. Two years later, he became the first Dodger batsman since Kirk Gibson in 1988 to win the NL MVP Award (Clayton Kershaw won the award as a pitcher in 2014).

But like many, Bellinger suffered a down year in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. He tallied his lowest OPS in four years (.789), and based on his home run (12) and RBI totals (30), he would have hit 32 homers and 81 RBI in a 162-game campaign. Those are solid numbers, but far from MVP-worthy.

Can the 25-year-old Gold Glove center fielder rebound in 2021? You can bet on it! Oddsmakers have set Bellinger’s prospective home run total at 38.5, and his RBI total at 113.5. Here are our picks for this year’s Cody Bellinger player props.

Over 38.5 homers is attainable

Bellinger didn’t offer any reason for his statistical fall-off in 2020, telling ESPN, “there’s no excuse for it, but I’m almost glad it happened because I became a better player toward the end of the season.”

He continued, “I felt really good in the playoffs and toward the end of the season and felt consistent, and I’m just going to take it from there.”

Bellinger had some clutch at-bats en route to his first World Series championship, and came away with four home runs in total. This offers hope that he’ll return to his MVP form with regular preparation this spring, especially with the debut of his new batting stance.

The two-time All-Star dropped from 39 homers in 2017 (132 games) to 25 in 2018, before bouncing back with 47 longballs in 2019. “Belli” clearly has power to spare, so barring injury, he should hit at least 39 four-baggers in 2021.

Under 113.5 RBI looks like the way to go

Unlike his home run number, which Bellinger has cleared twice in his brief four-year career, this RBI number looks a little too lofty.

Bellinger hit 115 RBI in his 2019 MVP campaign, but hasn’t come close to replicating that in any of his other three seasons. He’s averaged just 102 RBI per 162-game season despite playing on a Dodgers squad that’s ranked toward the top of the MLB in runs per game in each of the last four years.

Though it seems that a slew of RBI would follow Bellinger – especially if he experiences a power surge in 2021 – it hasn’t been the case thus far. Bettors should lean toward the Under here.