Cody Bellinger holds a lot of power over how the Chicago Cubs handle their offseason.
As the post-season is in full swing and we Chicago Cubs fans sit at home and wait for the offseason to begin, the Chicago Cubs offseason won’t officially start until 5 days after the World Series. You may be asking yourself, why would it start 5 days after? Couldn’t they just start right away? The answer to that question is simple, that is that when 1st basemen/OF Cody Bellinger has to decide on whether or not he stays with the Chicago Cubs or become a free agent.
The 29y old Cody Bellinger is coming off a solid and respectable season. Bellinger, who signed a 3y-80M dollar deal with opt-outs in ‘24-‘25, was able to play at a respectable 130 games, while driving in 78 runs, while slashing .266/.325/.426/.751 for and OPS+ of 111, and scraping together 137 hits, 23 doubles, 3 triples, 18 homers, 45 BB, and 89 K’s. Compared to his 2023 season where he was a top 10 in MVP discussions and also won a Silver Slugger, this would be considered by some to be a “down year” for the amount he is making (27.5M).
The Chicago Cubs have a few holes to fill for next year and one of them can be checked off if Cody Bellinger stays with the Chicago Cubs. All indications show that a major shakeup is coming to the Chicago Cubs roster, whether it’s them going out and signing a big-name free agent, a possible trade, a prospect coming up and making a big impact, or even Cody Bellinger leaving, something is going to change.
The market at 1st base this offseason would be considered by some to be slim pickings. Pete Alonso leads the pack as the true star of the class. It’s then followed by who I would consider a “2nd tier” star but still a great ball player in his own right, Christian Walker who is 4 years older than Bellinger, but is considered a better overall 1st baseman having 2 Gold Gloves (‘22, ‘23) at the position.
As you look deeper into the other names, it’s a mix of some veterans like Paul Goldschmidt and Carlos Santana, followed up by a couple of guys who have “opt-outs” or “club options” like Rhys Hoskins and Anthony Rizzo.
If Bellinger was to opt-in for next year (which I fully expect he will) he will be making 27.5M (2.5M buyout), which makes him the 23rd highest paid player in the MLB. Then the following season (2026) is another year in which he must decide to opt-in or out to his deal. In that year he would be set to make 25M (5M buyout). In a quote given to the Chicago Tribune Bellinger said:
“I honestly haven’t,” Bellinger said. “You think about it, but at the end of the day, I haven’t really even sat down with my wife and talked about it. And during the season, you just focus on playing, at least for me. I wake up and I’m going to go out and play, and that’s what I focus on. … I honestly have no idea.”
He went on to comment on whether he feels he can trust his agent Scott Boras:
“For me, if I feel like I have a decision, I’ll probably wait on it, see if I still feel it, just really feel it out and trust my gut, trust people around me,” Bellinger said. “It’s a privilege, so I’m going to do it with joy and see what happens.”
When asked regarding the status of Bellinger and his upcoming decision, GM Jed Hoyer commented on the situation:
“Obviously, (the decision) will impact team building. Figuring out what positions we’re filling. He is versatile, but it’ll have an impact. But I expect he’ll have a bunch of options given how he played this year.”
The upside is still there for him to bounce back into the Cody Bellinger of old, since he’s going into his “prime years” for a player. Not saying he’ll return to the MVP player we saw in 2019; he still is an above average player who has the potential to hit .300 and smash 30hrs for the club. He’s also managed to stay relatively healthy managing to play an average of 134.6 games in the past 3 seasons.
So far, his tenure with the Chicago Cubs has been solid and could turn out to be a great signing depending on how 2025 and 2026 go. The more Bellinger gets removed from that broken left finger the more he’ll get back to his old self. He also provides that good steady veteran leadership needed to pair with Ian Happ and to help mentor the emerging young stars on the roster.
Whether or not Cody Bellinger returns for the 2025 season remains a question to be answered till after the World Series. And the time for that answer and to see how it affects the Chicago Cubs offseason plans are fast approaching.
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