Chicago Cubs Slugger Bellinger Linked to Yankees as Potential Trade Fit

Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger has experienced a career resurgence after signing with the Cubs. Will that resurgence continue in Chicago or somewhere else?

Despite missing a month due to injury, Bellinger is on course to bouncing back with his best year since his MVP season in 2019. But the Cubs are under-.500, in a close NL Central race and trying to determine if they’re going to buy, sell or stand pat at the trade deadline.

If the Cubs sell, Bellinger could be a target of teams looking for outfield help. MLB.com wrote recently in a mailbag that one team in particular could use Bellinger’s bat and versatility down the stretch:

I could see Cody Bellinger as a potential trade target for the Yankees, who would only be on the hook for the remainder of his $17.5 million salary (plus a $5 million buyout of his $25 million mutual option for 2024).

The outfield has been kind of a mess for the New York Yankees this season. Aaron Judge was having another great year, but he can’t get off the injured list. He is currently rehabbing a toe injury and revealed that there are torn ligaments in the toe. It’s not clear when he’ll return, though he did participate in baseball activities for the first time on Wednesday in Oakland.

The Yankees just got Harrison Bader back from the injured list. Giancarlo Stanton is in a protracted slump and is more likely to DH as he works back from injury. Jake Bauers, Billy McKinney, Willie Calhoun and Isiah Kiner-Falefa are also options.

The point is because of Bellinger’s bat and versatility, he could take on a primary role with the Yankees the day he steps foot in Yankee Stadium.

He’d just be trading in one set of pinstripes for another.

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