Cody Bellinger doesn’t really remember much of his first World Series experience in 1999, as he was just four years old and his dad, Clay, was on the Yankees’ roster for their sweep of the Braves but did not play.
He does remember the next two years, though, including being on the field with families in 2000 when the Yankees clinched the Subway Series at Citi Field, and he has memories from before 1999 with his father in Baby Bombers pinstripes, so it means a lot for him and his dad that he’s now able to put on the real ones, too.
“It is truly wild. When I got the news, I called him and he was very excited. He plays it all cool but I know deep down he’s really excited,” Cody told the media in his introductory Zoom Thursday. “We lived upstate growing up, and I remember I grew up with the Pettittes in that kids’ room. I was on the field in 2000, and in 2001 when we lost to the D-Backs, and I have some very solid memories of it. I actually have memories of being a bat boy when my dad was in the minors, too, but my mom did a great job with the camcorder, and we’d watch home videos of it when I was older.”
Clay Bellinger was born and raised in Oneonta, so upstate New York is ‘home’ for the Bellingers in some way, even as Cody grew up in Arizona – where Clay spent three years in Triple-A with the Giants – once his family settled there full-time after Clay’s retirement following the 2004 season.
Clay has been with Cody every step of the way, from coaching his Little League World Series team to pitching to him in the 2017 Home Run Derby. But, unlike the Pettittes – Josh, six months older than Cody, was drafted by the Yankees in 2013 but never played professionally – the Bellingers now share the pinstripes, and we’ll surely see dad in the Bronx at some point.
“I have small memories of the kids’ playroom I’d go to during the games, the house that we lived at, and like I said, my mom did a great job with the camcorder,” Cody said. “That kind of helps me remember what we were doing out there.”
Cody has only played three games at Yankee Stadium, the one series the Dodgers came in for in 2023, but he was 3-for-10 with a homer in that series, and looks forward to being there 81 times a year.
“Everything about it excites me: the organization, the fans, the stadium, the atmosphere. I’ve only played there once, and it was a really cool moment, and I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about everything there,” Cody said. “I’m excited to be a part of it and excited to get to work and play baseball how I want to play it. I try to stay even-keeled, but it definitely excites me.”
And there’s no doubt that, having seen his dad play in three World Series and two big markets, and having played in two big markets himself, Cody won’t be in awe of the moment.
“I was chatting with some family about the ups and downs of a career with good and bad moments, but it all brought me here. I feel like I’m prepared for it,” he said. “I’ve been been at the highest stages, and I like where I’m at right now. The pressure, the moment, you want it and you want to take advantage of it. That’s the goal for me, and what I want to be a part of. In life, a baseball career is short, and to have the opportunity here to play for one of the best franchises in sports, once I knew there was interest, I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity, and I’m glad it was all able to work out.”