Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger made his triumphant return to the team’s Mesa complex on Wednesday, and the common theme was one of unfinished business after the team fell just short of a playoff berth last season.
Bellinger agreed to a three-year pact to return to the Cubs, checking in at a reported $80 million. The deal comes with two opt-out clauses, one after each of the first two years of the deal, giving Bellinger the flexibility to earn a new longer-term contract if he can replicate last year’s success.
In meeting the media on Wednesday, Bellinger said that he feels that the team’s failure to capture the National League Central last season played a big role in his decision to return to Chicago.
“We were so close last year. We got really banged up towards the end and fought to the very end,” he said. “For me to come back with almost the same team, to experience playoffs in Chicago is something I want to do, and it’s a big part of the reason why I wanted to come back here.”
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
Bellinger said he found himself “craving baseball” as negotiations with the Cubs and other teams dragged on, but said that he trusted agent Scott Boras and the negotiating process.
“I trusted the process,” he said. “I was in constant communication with Scott in understanding what was going on. Super aware of the situation, and got constant support from my wife. Whenever I was ready, I wanted to be ready and I feel really good right now.”
From the Cubs’ perspective, their interest in Bellinger never wavered according to President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer, but the expectations on the price of the deal were what ultimately had to be hammered out.
Sports
“I felt he was a great fit for the team, great fit in the clubhouse. That never wavered,” he said. “Over the last five to seven days before we got a deal done, we kind of targeted a deal that made sense for both sides, and at that point, we started making offers and getting more serious.”
Boras didn’t specifically say that Bellinger would have preferred a longer-term deal, instead focusing on the common ground reached between the Cubs and his client in the negotiations.
“On something like this with this kind of structure and flexibility is what we’re looking for, and we had mutual agreement and understanding that this type of structure was agreeable to both of us,” he said.
As for Bellinger, there’s only one thing on his mind: getting the Cubs back to the playoffs for the first time in three seasons.
“I want to help bring this team to the playoffs. That was a want and a need for me,” he said.
