Cody Bellinger Becomes Quickest to 21 Career Home Runs

Los Angeles Dodgers rookie first baseman and outfielder Cody Bellinger continued his hot-hitting ways Monday night, collecting three hits (two home runs), four RBI and two runs scored.

Bellinger required just 51 games to reach his current total of 21 career home runs, fewer than any other player in MLB history, per the Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN). The previous record was held by Wally Berger in 1930, who reached 21 homers in his 55th career major-league contest. Bellinger also cranked multiple homers for the fifth time in his young career, setting the mark for fewest games required to notch five multi-homer games.

Entering the season, Bellinger was rated among the best prospects in baseball by three different prospect sites, per Baseball Reference. He started the season off hot at Triple-A Oklahoma City in 2017, cranking five home runs and posting a .343/.429/.627 batting line over 18 games before receiving his first call to the majors in late April.

The 21-year-old's stay wasn't expected to last long, but injuries to Joc Pederson and Adrian Gonzalez extended it. Now that he's established himself at the top level, it would be difficult for the Dodgers to send him packing back to Triple-A even when Gonzalez returns from the disabled list.

While it's unlikely Bellinger will continue to slug homers at his current pace, the Dodgers may have a budding superstar on their hands. Only time will tell, but he has certainly played a major role in the team's 45-26 record so far this season. The club sits just a half game behind the Colorado Rockies for the top spot in the NL West.

Bellinger and the Dodgers return to the diamond for the second game of a four-game series against the New York Mets on Tuesday evening.