Chicago Cubs Receive Awful Grade for Trading Cody Bellinger to New York Yankees

The Chicago Cubs didn't receive a good grade for their trade of Cody Bellinger.

Sep 24, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger (24) hits an RBI triple against the Philadelphia Phillies in the sixth inning at Citizens Bank Park. / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs have been very busy this offseason, as they continue to look to improve their team. 

So far this winter, the Cubs have been one of the more aggressive teams in baseball.

After a solid campaign in 2024, Chicago figured to be players coming into the offseason, and with a couple of needs and a desire to improve, the Cubs certainly had the means to make something happen. 

Chicago ended up pulling off one of the biggest trades of the winter so far, as they acquired Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros in exchange for Isaac Paredes, Cam Smith, and Hayden Wesneski. 

After the deal to acquire Tucker, it became clear that Cody Bellinger was likely to be moved.

That ended up being the case, as Chicago traded him to the New York Yankees along with $5 million in exchange for Cody Poteet. 

David Schoenfield of ESPN.com recently graded the trade for both the Yankees and the Cubs.

For Chicago, they received a grade of “D”, as he didn’t like the deal at all for them. 

“Tucker gives them the star hitter they've lacked since peak Kris Bryant/Anthony Rizzo, but there's no other way to couch this: This is a salary dump from a presumed big-market organization that continues to pinch pennies on the side. Trading Bellinger certainly hurts the depth and flexibility of the roster and puts a lot of pressure on Crow-Armstrong to hit (88 OPS+ last year, with a hot month in August pumping up the numbers) and Busch to perform again (and he had a so-so .732 OPS after a hot start when he homered six times in his first 15 games). The Cubs have other young outfield options in Alexander Canario, Kevin Alcantara and Owen Caissie, so I can see where they felt Bellinger wasn't needed.”

This trade certainly feels like a better one for New York than it does for Chicago, as it was a clear cap dump by the Cubs.

While it was a bit surprising to see Bellinger opt into his contract this offseason, he was still a productive player despite what was a down year power-wise for him. 

Now, the Cubs will be saving a lot of money from the trade, and where they allocate that money could help make this deal an easier one to swallow.

For a team that is looking to be a contender in 2025, trading a player the caliber of Bellinger in a salary cap dump doesn’t improve the team. 

While Chicago can be better with Tucker, they must continue to try and build the best possible roster around him for this coming season.

Trading the slugger will create financial flexibility, but they are losing a talented player without getting much in return.