Cubs concerns about late Cody Bellinger signing already proven wrong

When the Chicago Cubs officially signed Cody Bellinger to a three-year, $80 million contract, the initial fan response centered on the structure of the deal. It includes two opt-outs, which means Chicago and Bellinger are due for the same song and dance next offseason. Bellinger essentially holds all the leverage with this framework. How "worth it" he is will depend entirely on his performance in 2024.

The next wave of concern was tied to Bellinger's readiness. It's hard enough to get up to speed for the regular season with a full spring training runway, but to join in late February — little more than a month until MLB Opening Day — is whole new level of difficult.

Thankfully for the Chicago faithful, Bellinger dutifully kept his physical and mental shape in a good place over the offseason. According to Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune, Bellinger is expected to make his Cactus League debut on Wednesday in the DH slot. He will "likely" play in the field on Friday or Saturday.

Cody Bellinger expected to make Cubs spring training debut on March 6

Bellinger spoke to the Tribune about his offseason process and how he kept his swing sharp despite the long layoff.

"The physical part, it’s the easier part and then getting out in the game is visualization and seeing the ball so just prepping myself as much as I could. The visualization part of it all — [personal hitting coach Micah Franklin] tries to get me out and I’m trying to get hits off him so you get that competitive nature."

Essentially, Bellinger has been partaking in competitive ABs all offseason. There's a stark difference between batting practice and live MLB action, but Bellinger is one of the most polished hitters in the league at full capacity. Very few players can see the strike zone and read pitches more effectively.

Bellinger was essential to the Cubs' valient (but failed) playoffs push in 2023. After back-to-back disastrous seasons in LA, the 28-year-old signed a one-year "prove it" deal with Chicago and, well, he proved it. The talented centerfielder slashed .307/.356/.525 with 26 home runs and 97 RBI in 499 AB. He finished 10th in NL MVP voting and earned his second Silver Slugger award.

There are concerns about Bellinger's mediocre hard-hit rate (31.4 percent), which landed in the 10th percentile last season. That said, his strong bat-to-ball skills and lengthy track record of success make it easy to preach optimism. We are talking about a former MVP who popularized the "Belli-Bomb." Only so many players have reached the same heights as Bellinger, and he's still on the right side of 30.

If anything, there's an equal chance that he improves further upon last season's success. Regression isn't outside the realm of possibility, but so long as Bellinger is healthy, he will remain critical to the Cubs' success. Chicago's offense would've fallen off a cliff without Bellinger anchoring the heart of the lineup.

The hope is that, with Craig Counsell onboard and Bellinger fully initiated, the Cubs can take the next step in 2024.