CODY "CLUTCH" BELLINGER IS ON FIRE & I'M HERE FOR IT!

So far, my favorite part of the season has been watching Cody Bellinger. No matter what that is going to be an interesting storyline to follow since his dad Clay Bellinger was a Yankee. It's got human interest piece written all over it. Here we are middle of May and Cody has kicked it up a notch which makes it even more exciting for me.

Cody had a slow start to his first year in pinstripes, but lately he's been on fire! He looks like a different hitter. He has a .312 BA with six doubles, four home runs and 10 RBI over his last 20 games. Want to drool over better stats? His last 12 games, he has a .340 BA with three doubles, three homers and six RBI. What's gotten into him? Whatever it is, tell the Yankees coaching staff to leave him alone! Don't tweak with anything else just let him do his thing. 

But they have tweaked something and for once it looks like it has worked. I found this video on Twitter @RyanGarciaESM and he's definitely made some adjustments at the plate. The more open stance is definitely working. His strikeouts are down, his contact rate is up, and the ball is flying off the bat again. It's everything the Yankees need right now.

And this is why I love this game so much. The smallest tweak can make the biggest difference. The strategy and fundamentals are everything. A consistent Cody makes this Yankees team even more dangerous. Going into the season, I had so many friends (not Yankee fans) telling me that the Yankees picked the wrong strategy over the winter. All I kept hearing was "Cody Bellinger is NEVER going to replace Juan Soto." All I kept saying was he didn't need to replace Soto. In fact, I didn't want ONE guy to replace Soto. We needed a lengthier lineup. We needed to not look for one power hitter to "fix" the offense, we needed more.

Cody can be part of that "more" without a doubt. If we can just keep Cody from falling into long droughts as he has experienced at times over the years, he has a lot to offer this team. He's athletic, a good defender and he's versatile with the ability to play first and the outfield AND he's got some speed. He has more to offer then Soto does at full potential.

There's so much upside to a Cody firing on all cylinders and I'm excited to see this. As of last night, he has a 13-game hitting streak....and we REALLY want to see that continue.

Now if you will excuse me, I have to go order my Bellinger jersey now to add to the collection.....

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj