The market for centre fielder Cody Bellinger, the undisputed #2 position player available on the free agent market this offseason, appears to be starting to focus now that superstar slugger Shohei Ohtani has signed a contract with the Dodgers. In contract negotiations this winter, Bellinger and agent Scott Boras are reportedly looking for “$200MM plus,” according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Bellinger’s stint in LA ended in a horrific fashion, so it’s amazing that he’s in a position to even approach that sum. Throughout the 2021 season, the outfielder battled ailments to his calf, shoulder, and ribs. He also had a terrible season when he did play, slashing a pitiful.165/.240/.302 in 350 plate appearances. Even though he was able to stay off the injury list in 2022, his poor performance continued as he only hit.210/.265/.389, which led the Dodgers to decide not to tender him this offseason.
Shortly after not getting selected, Bellinger accepted a one-year contract from the Cubs, where he began the 2023 season with the goal of increasing his worth in anticipation of returning to the open market following the season. He most definitely excelled in that endeavour, slashing.307/.356/.525 and placing in the top 10 of the NL MVP voting in addition to winning his second career Silver Slugger award. In our annual Top 50 MLB free agents list, MLBTR projected Bellinger for a twelve-year, $264MM deal—the second-highest projected guarantee after Ohtani—despite possible concerns about his quality of contact in 2023.
Numerous prospective suitors for Bellinger on the free agent market have now moved on. The Yankees appeared to have no room for Bellinger on their roster after acquiring three left-handed hitting outfielders in Trent Grisham, Alex Verdugo, and Juan Soto via trade. In the meantime, outfielder Jung Hoo Lee was just signed by the Giants to a six-year, $113MM contract. San Francisco may have the means to sign Bellinger as well, but given the team’s current outfield situation and need for pitching, it seems more likely that the team would target elite arms like Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, and Shota Imanaga rather than adding to its centre field talent by signing Bellinger.
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