If the Chicago Cubs don’t retain slugger Cody Bellinger this offseason, reports indicate that the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays are “lurking.”

According to MLB Insider Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays remain possibilities for free agent slugger Cody Bellinger.

Per Nightengale:

If Cody Bellinger does not wind up back with the Chicago Cubs, the Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners are lurking.

Let’s examine a few things here…

1) Bellinger is an excellent player, coming off an excellent season. It stands to reason that he wants a mega deal, likely exceeding $200 million, but he hasn’t found it yet.

In 2023, as he hit .307 with 26 home runs and 97 RBI for the Cubs – in just 130 games.

Bellinger won the National League MVP in 2019, hitting 47 home runs for the Dodgers, but then he scuffled massively through injury and poor performance in 2020-2022. That led to him being non-tendered by LA and signing the one-year deal with the Cubs.

Perhaps the history of inconsistency is what’s scaring some teams off with regards to Bellinger.

2) The Cubs could surely want Bellinger back, but given that they just spent on Shota Imanaga, and already paying guys like Dansby Swanson big money, it’s unclear what their appetite for another major contract is.

3) The Blue Jays were listed as the favorite for Bellinger less than a month ago, but the fit remains curious. The team already has three outfielders (Daulton Varsho, George Springer and Kevin Kiemeraier), so would they use a four-man outfielder/designated hitter rotation? The same questions have been raised about their reported interest in Jorge Soler.

4) The Mariners could desperately use Bellinger, and they are also connected to Soler this offseason. But the team’s finances are so up in the air this offseason that it’s hard to envision them signing Bellinger, unless it’s for a one-year deal, or a two-year deal with an opt-out.