Cubs star Cody Bellinger could be in line for major paycheck during offseason, says MLB insider

The Chicago Cubs opted not to trade free-agent-to-be Cody Bellinger at the deadline. In the end, if they want to keep him longer than this season, it may well cost them a pretty penny. He's been great this year, proving his down times in the past may have just been a fluke.

Per Bob Nightengale, Bellinger may have played his way right into the big markets. He's been good this year on a one-year prove it deal. He proved it, and Nightengale believes teams will have to pay up:

“The price-tag will be heavy, exceeding $200 million, perhaps even seeking more than $300 million. The most aggressive suitors are expected to be: The Cubs, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres and New York Yankees.”

The Cubs wanted to keep Bellinger and instead of selling, opted to buy at the deadline. They wanted to pursue the playoffs rather than sell off assets. Now, they're 3.5 games out of first and three games up for the second wild card spot in the NL.

They're very likely to make the postseason, but once that ends, the focus will turn to Bellinger. They obviously like him enough to keep him and not get any assets for a trade, so they'll likely be interested in re-signing him. Unfortunately for them, his good play has been a two-edged sword.

The Cubs will have steep competition, reportedly from the New York Yankees, San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants.

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Who will sign Cody Bellinger?

Cody Bellinger couldn't have picked a better time to return to form. After the Cubs took a flier on the former MVP and Rookie of the Year, he returned the favor by turning in his best season in a while. He's been worth 4.1 fWAR (the most since 2019) and has a 143 wRC+.

Cody Bellinger is going to get paid

The Yankees make a lot of sense for the slugger. They'll need an outfielder, and his left-handed bat works perfectly in Yankee Stadium. Furthermore, his high OBP fits in with their philosophy.

The Giants, who are on the West Coast that Bellinger used to reside on, have been known to spend money, so they can't be ignored, either.