Inside The Mets

Mets' Potential Free Agent Target Opts in to Deal With NL Foe

An elite hitter the New York Mets had been linked to in free agency is now staying with his current NL team.

Grant Young

Jul 13, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a New York Mets hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the eighth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Jul 13, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a New York Mets hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the eighth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
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Chicago Cubs slugger Cody Bellinger was expected to be among the top free agent hitters available this offseason, and many insiders believed the New York Mets would be one of the teams most likely to secure his services.

While the 2019 NL MVP and 2020 World Series champion had a down season with the Cubs in 2024 (.266 batting average, .751 OPS, and 23 home runs) compared to his 2023 campaign (.307 batting average, .881 OPS, and 29 home runs), he's still an elite left-handed bat who would have fit right in to the middle of the Mets' lineup, especially if Pete Alonso decides to sign elsewhere.

However, the three-year, $80 million deal Bellinger signed with Chicago this past offseason included two player opt-outs, one of which was for after the 2024 season.

And a November 2 X post from Jon Heyman that wrote, "Cody Bellinger opts in to stay with Cubs. Has $52.5M over 2 left, and opt out after 2025 with $25M and $5M buyout left after ’25," conveyed that he elected to exercise that player option.

Therefore, Bellinger — who has a .261 batting average with a whopping .917 OPS, 13 home runs, 31 RBIs, and 24 runs scored in 39 games versus the Mets in his career — will remain in Chicago for at least one more season.

While Bellinger primarily plays in the outfield for Chicago, he also has seen time at first base in his MLB career. And therefore another potential free agent first baseman is now off the market, which could increase competition to sign Alonso.

Maybe the Mets will get a chance to pursue Bellinger next offseason.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers the New York Yankees, the New York Mets, and Women’s Basketball for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco, where he also played Division 1 baseball for five years. He believes Mark Teixeira should have been a first ballot MLB Hall of Fame inductee.

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