Chicago Cubs rumors: 5 players that could be on the trade block

Cubs that could be on the trade block: Outfielder Cody Bellinger

Like Kyle Hendricks, Cody Bellinger was very good a few years ago but has fallen on rough times recently. However, for Bellinger, his high was even higher and the low has been even lower.

In his rookie season of 2017, Bellinger was one of the best players in baseball. He had 39 home runs, 97 RBI, a 143 OPS+, and a  3.9 rWAR. He was also an All-Star, came in ninth in NL MVP voting, and he won the NL Rookie of the Year Award.

He had a good season in 2018 but, offensively, he saw a slight downtick while still being well above league average (120). In 2019, he had one of the best seasons of any player in the decade. He had 47 home runs, 115 RBI, a .305/.406/.629 slash line, a 167 OPS+, and a 8.7 rWAR. He was an All-Star, Gold Glove winner, Silver Slugger winner, and won the NL MVP.

His offense dropped significantly in the shortened 2020 season but it was still above league average at 112. Then, the bottom absolutely fell out. In 2021, Bellinger was injured for part of the season after suffering a shoulder injury in Game 7 of the 2020 NLCS when he was celebrating a home run.

In 95 games, he hit .165 with an OPS of .542, which is nearly half of what he had in 2019 (1.035). His OPS+ was a paltry 44, or 56 percent below league average. Last season, it wasn’t much better, as he hit .210 with a .654 OPS and a 78 OPS+.

The Dodgers non-tendered him this offseason and the Cubs decided to take a flier on him for a one-year deal. They may be able to strike lightning in a bottle and if Bellinger is even close to his former self, the Cubs could look to extend him or, perhaps, trade him to a team in contention that will need a power, left-handed bat that can play the outfield and first base.