November 6th, 2016 at 7:00 am 
by Ron Cervenka For those who follow the Dodgers minor league affiliates even slightly, they knew that it wasn’t a matter of if a Dodgers prospect would be the MVP of the Arizona Fall League’s annual Fall Stars Game, it was a matter of which one. With Dodgers number three ranked outfield prospect Alex Verdugo out of the running due to a prior baseball commitment in Japan, that left the MVP title between Dodgers number one ranked first base prospect Cody Bellinger and Dodgers number four ranked second base prospect Willie Calhoun.
Okay, perhaps this was a bit presumptuous with 27 of MLB’s top prospects on each of the AFL’s East and West Division teams.
…or was it?
Spoiler alert. No it wasn’t.
While many would have predicted that it would be 21-year-old Cody Bellinger who would snag the game’s MVP honors, it ended up being 22-year-old Willie Calhoun.
All Calhoun did was go 3-for-3 with two singles and a monster home run, scored two runs, drove in three runs and collected six total bases.
“I was just seeing the ball good today and the pitchers were good but they left a few balls in the zone that I was able to barrel up,” Calhoun said. “I was just trying to go up there with a better plan than the pitcher. Obviously, these are really good pitchers out here so I was just trying to stick with my plan and I stuck with my plan and got good pitches.”
Calhoun’s fifth-inning two-run home run gave the West Division Fall Stars a commanding 10-3 lead.
(Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)
But wait, there’s more.
Although Calhoun edged out Bellinger for MVP honors, he just did so. Even though Bellinger only went 1-for-5 on the night, that one was an absolute bomb that he hit for a two-run home run over the home bullpen in right field. And while no one will argue that Calhoun deserved MVP honors, the two young Dodgers prospects accounted for five runs in the West Division’s 12-4 rout over the East Division.
Calhoun is presented with the 2016 Bowman Fall Stars Game Most Valuable Player Award.
(Photo courtesy of Arizona Fall League)
Was Bellinger disappointed that Calhoun – with whom he lives (along with Verdugo) – edged him out of the MVP award? Not even a little bit. In fact, he was extremely excited for his closest friend, roommate and teammate.
“It’s awesome, man. I mean he’s a great dude, he’s a good hitter so I’m not even surprised,” Bellinger said.
Although it may sound a bit redundant, Bellinger echoed Calhoun about his own at-bats during the game.
“I was seeing the ball well. I took some good swings even on my swing and misses. That’s just baseball,” Bellinger said. “He hung me a slider and luckily it got out.”
The “he” that Bellinger is speaking of is Diamondbacks left-handed pitching prospect Jared Miller and the “got out” did so by an estimated 430 feet.
Bellinger’s two-run monster home run in the bottom of the sixth inning would be the last runs scored by the AFL West Division, but by then the game was well out of reach for the East Division Fall Stars.
(Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)
Even though Calhoun and Bellinger accounted for enough runs to win by themselves, this was anything but a two-man show. In fact, the West Division’s starting pitcher, St. Louis Cardinal right-handed pitching prospect Brent Honeywell, pitched two perfect innings in which he struck out five of the six batters he faced. Additionally, before Calhoun and Bellinger put their combined five runs on the board, San Diego Padres outfield prospect Michael Gettys slugged a bases-clearing double (following Calhoun’s first base hit of the night in the second inning) to give the West an early 3-0 lead.
With the annual Fall Stars Game now in the books there are only two weeks of Fall Ball remaining, which will culminate with the 2016 AFL Championship Game on Saturday, November 19 at 1:08 pm PT at Scottsdale Stadium. The game will be televised live on MLB Network and on MLB.com.
You don’t suppose…
Posted in 
trying to send Vin old photos of where he grew up, Washington Hts., NYC, I grew up 2 blocks from him, any ideas where 2 send?
1000 Vin Scully Ave. Los Angeles, California. Zip used to be 90051 but I think it changed. Likely they all know where Vin Scully Ave. is. They only have to look for a really big building.
I saw last night’s AFL ASG and was impressed of course with the showing of Calhoun and Bellinger. Only thing for Bellinger is his HUGE swing, which he may have to adjust when he gets to MLB. And the announcers asked what many have asked and that is, Are the Dodgers going to have all LH batters? Even though a major portion of pitching is RHP, any opposing team will still throw as many LHP at the Dodgers as possible if they don’t balance the lineup. For some reason, most LH batters have trouble with LHP, where as most RH batters can handle RHP
As noted, Bellinger’s HR came off a lefty. I agree that his swing is very long (and hard) but he has a GREAT eye. He rarely gets called out on strikes.
I seem to rec’lect Joc was known for a good eye early in ’15. That’s why they put him in the 1 hole.
Simple answer: Repetition.
There are more RHP, as you pointed out. So, more reps vs. RHP means more experience means better hitting.
IMHO that’s why so many hitters, right or left, need to be platooned. They’ve been platooned so long they don’t know any other way.
Then you have the exceptions like Turner, Will Myers, Justin Upton, etc. who hit RH pitching better than LH.
I checked his R/L BA splits for the last few years. He was better vs. RHP, but the extreme difference is something new.
I’m expecting he’s making that his offseason project and we (I hope “we”) will see improvement next year.
That brings something to mind. He didn’t really have an offseason program last year. That may have something to do with the problem.
At 21 years old, Cody is still growing into his 6’4″ frame and, as I’ve noted in several previous articles (and on Twitter), when he does … LOOK OUT!
I have come to know Cody rather well over the past two years and I am absolutely overwhelmed by his baseball savvy, his maturity and his sense of calm which he no doubt gets from his father, former major leaguer Clay Bellinger.
I get a chuckle whenever I hear/read comments that Bellinger is “too this” or “too that”; the kid just turned 21 years old for crying out loud. Give him time to develop.
Not only do I see Cody as AGon’s eventual successor, his swing, his defense and his overall mannerisms VERY closely resemble those of the veteran first baseman which, of course, is a VERY good thing.
Ron, just as Chase Utley was critical for Corey Seager’s development, I believe that AGon will be hugely instrumental in Cody’s development. I know AGon is costly, and that he will become a 10/5 player this August, but I hope he is retained to not only be the glue on the Dodger infield, but also to be the mentor for Cody Bellinger. I look at AGon’s contract as partially an investment into the development of Cody Bellinger.
AGon is under contract through the 2018 season. He isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
That’s the thing, having to platoon because of the deficiencies against LHP.. Besides signing Kenley and JT, THE MUST CORRECT THIS ISSUE and balance the lineup with a RH bat THAT HITS LHP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Growing up I always believed the players believed that the name on the front of the jersey was more important than the name on the back. I no longer think that is true for a good many of the players today. Maybe I am getting cynical in my old(er) age, but baseball is becoming more about the next contract rather than loyalty to team and player.
That being said, I agree that Cody’s swing is long, and probably resembles Joc’s long swing. Both Joc and Cody had MLB fathers, so I think they learned their approach early on in the overall development. Obviously it has been tweaked, but the foundation was there. Joc is probably a better athlete, but Cody will probably end up the better baseball player. While Joc had better minor league BA numbers, they both project to be solid (if not prolific) LH power hitters. I saw improvement in Joc’s swing this year and his numbers showed it, but that could have been because he was exposed to less LHP. He is still 24, and I believe he will continue to improve. I think Cody will also continue to improve. But I am not sure that the improvement will come into a change in either of their approaches.
My cynicism comes into play when considering why should they change their swing? Chris Davis signs a $161M contract because he hits HRs. He has over 200Ks for each of the last two years, with a 2016 slash line of .221/.332/.459/.792. Todd Frazier has a slash line of .225/.302/.464/.767 with 163K in 666 PA, and he is projected to make $13.5 in arbitration. Why? Because he hit 40HR in a band box; U.S. Cellular Field. Chris Carter has a slash line of .222/.321/.499/.821 with 206Ks in 644 PA. He is projected to make $8.1M in arbitration. Even if he is non-tendered, someone will sign him for millions because he can hit HRs.
The HR is revered today. It significantly increases OPS and OPS+ which is probably the single largest consideration from an offensive saber-metric standpoint. Would I prefer that they choke up and try to punch it into left field with two strikes? Sure. But that is me as a Dodger fan, not their agent. Hitting is muscle memory, and the more they get away from that long hard swing the harder it will be to get back to it on call. Where I think they will show improvement is their pitch recognition and selection (and hopefully maturity…especially with Joc). But why change their approach/swing when hitting mistakes a mile and at 110 MPH will get you millions and keep you in the game?
This is not a criticism of either Joc or Cody as both are favorites of mine. But I think it is a realistic look into today’s baseball economics.
Bellinger should see a lot of action in ST in 2017 and it will be good for him to stick close to Agon and really learn the trade of being a top notch 1st baseman.