Cody Bellinger continues to be a popular name on the free agent market following the Los Angeles Dodgers’ decision to non-tender him.
It has already been reported that the Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants and Colorado Rockies are interested in signing the 2019 National League MVP. The Dodgers have also maintained their interest in re-signing the 27-year-old at a lower cost than the nearly $20 million he was set to receive in arbitration.
There are believed to be at least 11 teams interested in Bellinger, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, and the Houston Astros are among them:
Cody Bellinger has interest from 11 teams following the Dodgers’ decision to nontender him (he was expected to get $19 million in arbitration). The Astros, Cubs and Giants are among the teams in play.
Bellinger was among the most outspoken members of the Dodgers roster following the revelation that the Astros used illegal sign-stealing in 2017 to win their World Series over L.A., so there may be some hesitation for him to join them.
Still, the Astros are one of the smarter organizations in baseball and they could potentially help Bellinger get back to producing at a high level. After suffering a shoulder injury during the 2020 postseason, Bellinger has not been able to regain his form. But at 27 years old, he still has more than enough time to get on track.
The two-time All-Star has hit just .203/.272/.376 with 46 doubles, 41 home runs and 134 RBI over 295 games the past three seasons. He did slightly bounce back from the worst season of his career in 2021, but he still had trouble making consistent contact and once again posted poor offensive numbers.
Although the Dodgers have expressed their interest in re-signing Bellinger, they also explored trading him before they elected to make him a free agent. If Bellinger joins a new club, James Outman, Trayce Thompson and Chris Taylor are all options to step into the starting spot, and the Dodgers have had reported interest in Kevin Kiermaier.
Cody Bellinger received multi-year offers
According to Bellinger’s agent, Scott Boras, the center fielder has received multi-year contract offers from teams, but they plan on signing a one-year deal in the hopes to regain his value and once again enter the free agent market as a 28-year-old.
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