(670 The Score) While his desire all winter long was to return to the Cubs, it wasn’t until late last week that outfielder Cody Bellinger truly felt he’d be back with the organization.
It was about five to seven days ago, by Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer’s estimation, that the conversation between the two sides really ramped up to a serious level. The end result was Bellinger signing a three-year, $80-million to return to the Cubs, with the news breaking early Sunday morning after the agreement was reached Saturday. The deal includes an opt-out after each of the first two seasons, giving Bellinger the opportunity to re-enter free agency if he has a big season and believes it’s in his best interest to hit the open market again.
The contract may be less than what Bellinger and powerful agent Scott Boras initially hoped for – Boras dodged that question when asked Wednesday – but Bellinger was nonetheless thrilled as he addressed his return during a press conference in Mesa, Arizona.
“I didn’t hide the fact internally that I did want to come back here,” Bellinger said. “I just love Wrigley Field, love the fans. Me and my family enjoy Chicago. When it was coming toward the end and everything was kind of coming to light a little bit, this was definitely something that I wanted and both sides agree on. I’m super happy it worked out the way it did.
“I trusted the process. I was in constant communication with Scott over here and understanding what was going on. I was super aware of the situation and had constant support from my wife. I was just with my family and whenever I was ready, I wanted to be ready, and I feel really good right now.”
Bellinger added it felt “amazing” to return to the Cubs and noted he was “craving baseball.”
Bellinger, 28, hit .307 with 26 homers, 97 RBIs, 20 steals and an .881 OPS in 130 games in 2023 while also playing stellar defense in center field and at first base. When the 2024 season opens, Bellinger will likely man center field most often after the Cubs recently indicated their preference is to use newly acquired infielder Michael Busch at first base.
Bellinger’s value to the Cubs was immense in 2023 and reflected in their performance with and without him. With Bellinger in their lineup, the Cubs were 69-61 and averaged 5.3 runs per games. In games he didn’t play, they were 14-18 and averaged 3.9 runs per game. The Cubs went 83-79 in 2023, and losing Bellinger would've been a huge blow to their hopes of competing at a high level in 2024.
“He’s a great fit for the team, a great fit in the clubhouse, love the person, love the family, all those things,” Hoyer said. “That never wavered. I think that we probably talked more often than Scott would’ve liked, but I feel like, I think with any negotiation, I think that sometimes there’s a misperception that we just fire offers back and forth to each other. I think there was a lot of talking about what each side wanted and over the last five to seven days before we got a deal, I think we kind of targeted a deal that made sense for both sides. And at that point, we did start making offers and talking more often and getting serious. But we had a lot of talks and like I said, our comments about Cody and our desire to bring him back never wavered. It was a matter of finding the right fit.”
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