Chicago Cubs place OF Cody Bellinger on IL with fractured rib

Cody Bellinger has two fractured ribs on his right side, sidelining another key player for the Chicago Cubs.

Bellinger got hurt when he hit the wall in center while trying to make a play on Yainer Diaz’s RBI double in the fourth inning of Tuesday night’s 7-2 victory over Houston. He was replaced in the field before the Astros batted in the seventh.

X-rays were negative, and Bellinger downplayed the injury after the win. But he had a CT scan on Wednesday morning that showed the fractures.

“He woke up feeling good,” Chicago manager Craig Counsell said. “He was encouraged how he woke up feeling and he was like, ‘I think I kind of dodged something’ was his words, actually. And unfortunately it just revealed what’s there.”

Counsell didn’t have a timetable for Bellinger’s return.

“The doctors will come up with a plan,” Counsell said before Wednesday’s matchup with the Astros, “and, like everything, he’s got to get symptom-free first and we’ll go from there.”

The Cubs put Bellinger on the 10-day injured list and recalled Pete Crow-Armstrong from Triple-A Iowa. The 22-year-old outfielder is considered one of the team’s top prospects, but he hit just .203 (16 for 79) with 24 strikeouts in his first 19 games of the season in the minors.

Bellinger joined fellow outfielder Seiya Suzuki on the IL, along with left-handers Justin Steele (left hamstring) and Drew Smyly (right hip), and right-handers Kyle Hendricks (low back strain) and Julian Merryweather (rib stress fracture).

Suzuki has been out since April 14 because of a right oblique strain. Counsell said he has resumed baseball activities and could be ready to go on a rehab assignment shortly after the team returns from its upcoming seven-game road trip.

The 28-year-old Bellinger hit .307 with 26 homers, 97 RBIs and 20 steals in 2023 in his first season with the Cubs, regaining his form after a couple of down years. He re-signed with Chicago in February for $80 million over three years.

Bellinger had just started to heat up before the injury. The 2019 NL MVP is batting .333 (10 for 30) with three homers and seven RBIs during an eight-game hitting streak.

“When you lose, I think, Seiya, when you lose Cody, players like that, your offense doesn’t improve. You know, it can’t, right?” Counsell said.

“Frankly what your goal is in those situations is to, there’s going to be a little bit of a drop-off, but you hope to minimize it as much as you can. And I do think we’re in that position, to just minimize maybe their absences a little bit.”

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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