Chicago Cubs Star Slugger Accepts Player Option, Avoids Free Agency

The Chicago Cubs finally got an answer from their star player about his offseason plans.

Dylan Sanders | Nov 2, 2024

Sep 25, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs infielder Cody Bellinger (24) hits an RBI single against the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth inning at Citizens Bank Park. / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

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Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs finally have their answer regarding their top pending free agent's offseason contract decision.

Cody Bellinger finally made his choice on Saturday morning and decided to opt in to his $27.5 million player option for the 2025 season and stick with the Cubs, rather than going into free agency per Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan.

There were differing opinions on whether Chicago should want him to stick around for that price or if they should encourage him to opt out and free that money up to be used elsewhere.

In the end, however, it was up to Bellinger. He decided to stay and hope to put up a better year of results before trying to cash in on a longterm deal.

The 29-year-old signed a one-year 'prove-it' deal with the Cubs ahead of the 2023 season in search of some momentum in his career after all hype following his young MVP season had died down.

In the three campaigns since winning the award, he had posted just a .203/.272/.376 slashing line with just 41 total home runs.

His 2023 with Chicago was the best year that he could have asked for, bumping his slashing line back up to .307/.356/.525 with 26 home runs and 97 RBI.

This past season ended up being just fine, but did not have solid consistency at the plate. He could potentially find that big deal that he wants in free agency this time, but sticking around with the Cubs will allow for some familiarity as he continues to turn his career back into the limelight.

Published Nov 2, 2024

DYLAN SANDERS

Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders