Former Cubs Slugger Named NL Comeback Player of Year

Cody Bellinger may not return to the Chicago Cubs in free agency, but his 2023 certainly left its mark.

Cody Bellinger claimed one more prize from his exceptional 2023 season with the Chicago Cubs as he was named the National League Comeback Player of the Year on Tuesday night.

Bellinger is the first Cubs player to win the award.

Bellinger won a Silver Slugger in 2023 as he slashed .307/.356/.525/.881 in 130 games with 26 home runs and 97 RBI, despite missing a month with an injury.

That came after two awful seasons in Los Angeles with the Dodgers, in which he barely batted .200 and dealt with injuries that limited his ability to play at the level that made him the 2019 National League MVP and a 2020 World Series champion.

Bellinger is also a former NL Rookie of the Year and Gold Glove recipient.

Now the question is whether Bellinger will re-sign with the Cubs or join another team. After the season he opted out of the mutual option on his two-year contract with the Cubs, which would have paid him $12 million.

Recently, USA Today reported that two teams were the co-favorites to land Bellinger — the San Francisco Giants and the New York Yankees.

Having two bidders in big markets like San Francisco and New York could drive up the price for Bellinger. The New York Post’s salary projections recently indicated that Bellinger could land a deal as rich as $240 million and for as long as eight years, with an average annual value between $27.5 million and $30 million.

The Athletic’s Jim Bowden recently projected Bellinger will get a seven-year, $177 million deal from the Yankees.

Most consider Bellinger to be the second-best position player in free agency, after two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, who is believed to be high on the Cubs’ list to sign. That pursuit may preclude the Cubs from signing Bellinger.

But, because the Cubs offered Bellinger the one-year qualifying offer of $20.325 million and Bellinger turned it down, the Cubs will get some draft compensation if he signs elsewhere.