Insider: Two Frontrunners Named For Cody Bellinger

December 13, 2023 ,


With Shohei Ohtani off the market, Cody Bellinger is now the top free agent bat, and according to MLB Insider Jon Heyman, the race is down to two teams: The Chicago Cubs and Toronto Blue Jays.

Chicago Cubs

"The Cubs, to me, make perfect sense. I know he loved it there... resurrected his offensive game there," says Heyman. That he did, as Bellinger, after three down seasons, hit .307 with the Cubbies, with an .881 OPS and a 133 OPS+, with 26 homers and 97 RBIs. 
They were the team that believed in him and gave him a chance to re-establish his value with a one-year, $17.5M deal last winter. They also believe they've shown him that they are a team on the rise.

Toronto Blue Jays

"Obviously the Jays now that they didn't get (Shohei) Ohtani, they didn't get (Juan) Soto... and they would love a left-handed hitting outfielder," said Heyman. 
Indeed, Toronto has been looking to add a productive lefty bat for a few years now, to insert into the top part of that right-handed lineup of George Springer, Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 
In addition, the Blue Jays have a big hole in center field, and could fill two areas of dire need in one fell swoop. 

And hey, they've got almost $700M sitting around burning a hole in their pocket after Ohtani spurned them for the Dodgers. 

Bellinger, the 2019 NL MVP with the Los Angeles Dodgers, is about to cash in big-time, no matter where he winds up. 

Photo: Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports


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