The Cubs declared that outfielder American baseball outfielder has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a fracture in his left middle finger.
Among the people who broke the story on X was Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune. Alexander Canario, a fellow outfielder, has been called up to replace him on the active squad.
Cionel Pérez, a left-hander, hit Bellinger in the hand during last night’s game. According to Montemurro on X, he left the competition because he thought he couldn’t toss a ball. It appears that a fracture has been discovered, therefore he will be out for some time.
Around the All-Star break, teams are usually more inclined to place a player on injured reserve (IL) because it gives them a longer break while maybe only missing a few games. The team hasn’t officially stated how long they anticipate Bellinger to miss, but if he has a broken bone, he was likely going to require an IL stint.
In any case, this is a difficult development for the team. Even if Bellinger isn’t hitting as much as he did in the previous season, wRC+ indicates that his batting line of.269/.331/.410 is still 9% over league average. In addition, he has five stolen bases while playing solid center field defense.
The Cubs, who are currently 44-49, are in a difficult situation. They are only 3.5 games behind the Rockies, Marlins, and Nationals in the crowded National League Wild Card race, and they would need to leapfrog six other clubs to get into postseason position. With less than three weeks until the trade deadline, the Cubs will soon need to decide how aggressively to buy or sell, or how to tread carefully between the two.
Losing a player of Bellinger’s caliber will make moving up the standings over the next several weeks a little more difficult. Although Bellinger’s contract opt-outs make a deal a difficult undertaking, Bellinger himself has been mentioned as a possible trade candidate. MLBTR’s Anthony Franco recently discussed this in an article for Front Office Subscribers. This injury might lessen the likelihood that the Cubs will line up something there, if there was ever a chance.
The Cubs are currently without two outfielders as Mike Tauchman is also out with an injury. They will need to move forward with a lineup that includes Ian Happ, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Seiya Suzuki in addition to Canario. Canario’s lifetime hitting line in the major leagues is a solid.282/.333/.538. That has only been seen in 42 plate appearances, but he has a solid Triple-A season this year with a line of.238/.330/.502.
It’s possible that Bellinger will be personally impacted by this. At the end of the season, he will have to decide whether to exercise his opt-out or stay with the Cubs. He can choose to accept a $2.5MM buyout or stay put and earn a $27.5MM salary in 2025, along with a $25MM player option and $5MM buyout for the following year. Obviously, Bellinger’s desire for another chance at free agency will depend on the type of platform he produces here in 2024, so he will be hoping to return in good standing soon.