Are Chicago Cubs Primed to Bring Bellinger Back?

One former Major League player believes the Chicago Cubs are the best landing spot for Cody Bellinger after this season.

Chicago Cubs slugger Cody Bellinger is a big part of the Cubs’ surge back into the National League Central race and is a prime candidate for Comeback Player of the Year awards after this season.

In fact, if he claims that award, he’ll get a $1 million bonus.

Then, likely, come free agency, as Bellinger and the Cubs have a $25 million mutual option. As Bellinger’s agent is Scott Boras, one of the best in the business, he’ll likely want to use Bellinger’s comeback season as leverage to get him into a long-term contract that he told the New York Post befits a player of his talent.

In fact, after calling Bellinger a “rare five-tool player,” Boras said Beillinger was “Ahead of everyone due to age.”

That’s quite the statement considering that Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani is set to hit the market.

Bellinger is having an incredible season, given that he had two awful seasons in 2021 and 2022. He’s slashing .327/.379/.554/.932 with 18 home runs and 59 RBI, despite missing a month due to an injury.

In fact, Boras contends that the shoulder injury that Bellinger suffered in the 2020 World Series celebration was largely responsible for his two follow-up seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers in which he barely hit .200.

So, at 28 years old, Bellinger has the potential to hit free agency at the perfect time. And, the team he’s with might actually be the best fit for Bellinger’s future.

That comes from none other than former Major League slugger, Matt Holliday, who joined a New York Post podcast recently. Holliday — the father of MLB’s No. 1 prospect, Jackson Holliday of the Baltimore Orioles — has seen Bellinger’s rise first-hand. He recently worked with Bellinger.

For now, the focus is on the season. But clearly one of the Cubs’ primary focuses this offseason has to be on getting Bellinger to return.

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