Cody Bellinger Gets Three-Year Deal, Returns to Chicago Cubs
After much speculation this offseason, free agent outfielder and former MVP Cody Bellinger is returning to the Chicago Cubs on a three-year deal. It will pay him $80 million and contains opt-outs after each of the first two years.
Per Jeff Passan of ESPN:
BREAKING: Centerfielder Cody Bellinger and the Chicago Cubs are in agreement on a three-year, $80 million contract, sources tell ESPN. Bellinger will receive opt-outs after each of the first two years of the deal. Bellinger, 28, returns to the Cubs after a prolonged free agency.
Cody Bellinger's salary on his deal with the Chicago Cubs will pay him $30 million this season, $30 million in 2025 (if he doesn't opt out after Year 1) and $20 million in 2026 (if he doesn't opt out after Year 2)
For the Cubs, this deal is a huge coup. They get the power bat they need in the middle of their order and don't have to pay the more than $200 million that Bellinger was reported to have wanted. For Bellinger, it's disappointing that he wasn't able to secure a bigger number, but he ultimately gets to go back to a place he was comfortable and enjoyed success in 2023.
With the Cubs last season, he hit .307 with 26 home runs. They finished second in the National League Central.
Lifetime, Bellinger is a seven-year veteran who has played with the Dodgers and Cubs. He won the MVP back in 2019, is a two-time All-Star, and is a Rookie of the Year winner and a Gold Glover.
At various points of the offseason, he was connected to the Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners.
Perhaps now that Bellinger has signed, the spigot can turn for other Scott Boras-led clients like Jordan Montgomery, Blake Snell and JD Martinez.
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