Chicago Cubs Star on Radar of New York Yankees As Juan Soto Contingency Plan

The Chicago Cubs could be a trade partner for the New York Yankees should Juan Soto leave in free agency.

Jul 7, 2023; Bronx, New York, USA; Chicago Cubs center fielder Cody Bellinger (24) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against the New York Yankees during the third inning at Yankee Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs were mentioned in the early going as a possible suitor for star free agent outfielder Juan Soto, but all indications are they won’t be spending much money this offseason.

Based on reports, that assessment is correct when it comes to the superstar right fielder.

That kind of splash won’t be coming as there are four teams who are considered legitimate landing spots for him at this point; the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox.

While the Cubs aren’t directly involved in the Soto sweepstakes, his decision is one that could have a major impact on the franchise.

Should he leave the Yankees, they will have a huge void in their lineup to fill and plenty of money at their disposal.

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Cody Bellinger is going to be part of New York’s contingency plan should Soto leave in free agency.

“If the New York Yankees don’t re-sign Juan Soto, one back-up plan floating around is signing free-agent first baseman Christian Walker, sign either Willy Adames or Alex Bregman to play third, shift Jazz Chisholm to second base, trade for Cubs center fielder Cody Bellinger, and then use the extra money to sign [Corbin] Burnes, [Max] Fried or [Blake] Snell.”

Soto is certainly an incredible player.

Retaining him would make all the sense in the world for the Yankees after seeing what he and Aaron Judge are capable of doing when they produced numbers normally only seen in video games.

But, the Plan B which Nightengale laid out, would certainly be something most fans would be on board with as several areas of needs would be addressed.

As for the Bellinger interest, it would make a lot of sense with his left-handed swing playing beautifully in Yankee Stadium. It is perfectly built with a short porch in right field for southpaw hitters, and it's a player archetype the team has not leaned into enough in recent years.

His versatility would also be a nice boost for the team.

After struggling to find a player capable of producing at first base, New York would have two with Bellinger and Christian Walker.

Manager Aaron Boone would also now have someone capable of playing regularly in center field, to save Judge’s legs throughout the season, without sacrificing a ton at the plate.

For the Cubs, moving on from Bellinger would also loosen the payroll reins to allow the front office to spend some money and upgrade the roster.

There are a lot of solid players who may not be at the top of the market but would help Chicago, especially on the mound, where help is needed in the rotation and bullpen.