Cody Bellinger News: Cubs favorites to re-sign star slugger as MLB insider expects busy few weeks for club

Free agent Cody Bellinger is one of the most intriguing options still available in free agency this winter, and traction is building regarding a return to the Chicago Cubs. While Bellinger declined a $25 million option in November to stay in Chicago, there is reason to believe he may return.

The Cubs have not signed a single free agent or landed anyone via trade, which is surprising as they were not far from being a playoff team in 2023. It feels like pressure may be building for them to make a flurry of moves, and Cody Bellinger may be among them.

This inactivity may be partly due to the team searching for a new manager, which they now have, after landing Craig Counsell from the Milwaukee Brewers. With Counsell in place, it feels Chicago will pursue the targets he wants and Bellinger could be among them.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today believes this will be the case. In a recent article, he wrote that the Cubs would re-sign Cody Bellinger and "be baseball’s most aggressive team these next five weeks."

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Cubs likely to meet Cody Bellinger contract expectations

Cody Bellinger declined his option on the back of a bounce-back year in Chicago. He opted for free agency, looking for a lucrative long-term deal. While teams have been hoping for a bargain in free agency, options are running out. As such, Bellinger is becoming more of a target.

As the Cubs have been so inactive thus far, if they are to make any noise in 2024 they will have to move fast, and re-signing Bellinger should be top of their priorities. Bellinger signing elsewhere would leave a hole in their roster, which was close to being of postseason quality in 2023.

There has been some talk about what a Cubs-Bellinger agreement would look like, with $220 million spread over around eight years being mentioned. On the back of winning the NL Comeback Player of the Year Award and his second Silver Slugger in 2023, he has some leverage and it would be a surprise if the Cubs didn't re-sign him.

According to Nightengale, only the Cubs have shown strong interest in Bellinger, but if they dally too long, someone else will doubtless pounce.