3 Shohei Ohtani-less moves for the Chicago Cubs to make in offseason

Don’t rule Bellinger to Chicago Cubs out just yet.

Cody Bellinger made it clear that he loves Chicago and enjoyed his time with the Cubs last season. He even went as far as to say he would love to come back. So, why not open that door back up?

Bellinger was named last year’s Comeback Player of the Year in Major League Baseball. Even though he missed more than 30 games last year, he still hit 26 home runs and had an average of .307, truly representing the heart of the Cubs lineup.

At the beginning of free agency, it looked almost certain Bellinger would be headed to the New York Yankees on a massive contract, just like they all do, right? But with talks between the Yanks and San Diego Padres about outfielder Juan Soto, those talks have been put on the back burner. There would be too much happening in the outfield with that addition to have a place for Belli.

The Cubs seemed unwilling to pay top dollar to bring Bellinger back at the start of free agency. But unless a team like the San Francisco Giants gets desperate to make a big splash, the Cubs almost seem like a perfect fit for him to stay and win. As for defensive alignments (with Pete Crow-Armstrong expected to be a big leaguer next year), I’m sure they’ll talk about that in negotiations, but can also cross that bridge when it comes.