Cubs trade Cody Bellinger to Yankees
Trading outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger seemed like the obvious next move for the Cubs once they acquired right fielder Kyle Tucker from the Astros on Friday.
They pulled it off four days later, sending Bellinger to the Yankees on Tuesday. Sources confirmed they’re also sending $5 million, split over the next two seasons, to offset part of Bellinger’s salary. In return, they received right-hander Cody Poteet.
It’s the kind of payroll-shedding move the Cubs wouldn’t have made if they weren’t concerned about squeezing into a budget set by ownership. They’re focused on getting over the postseason hump in 2025 but are trying to do it under constraints that other large-market teams such as the Mets, Yankees, Phillies and Dodgers don’t impose on themselves.
In Poteet, 30, they get a pitcher who hasn’t hit arbitration and has experience relieving and starting. He had a 2.22 ERA in five appearances in 2024 but spent three months on the injured list with a strained right triceps.
Before adding Tucker, the Cubs already were flush with outfielders — both established names and emerging prospects. With several players, including Bellinger, comfortable at multiple positions, it wasn’t an impossible puzzle figuring out whom to trade.
“We definitely have some surplus there — we have a lot of good players,” team president Jed Hoyer said Tuesday afternoon before the trade. “[We’re] trying to figure out how those fit together.”
Bellinger could have elected to test free agency after the season but instead picked up his $27.5 million player option for 2025 — the second year of a three-year contract. He has another opt-out in his deal after next season. The size and structure of his contract was clearly a factor for both sides in negotiations.
Bellinger wasn’t expected to replicate his 2023 Comeback Player of the Year performance in 2024, but fracturing his ribs and a finger at different points in the season while battling more pitcher-friendly conditions at Wrigley Field than usual may have exacerbated his dip.
“Cody back in there full-time post-trade deadline, the run-scoring started to become consistent,” manager Craig Counsell said during the winter meetings, acknowledging that the development of younger players at the bottom of the order was another key to stabilizing the offense in the second half. “That lineup produced runs.”
Bellinger still managed a .751 OPS and 18 home runs for the season. He also was willing to move around, playing center, right field and first base, depending on team needs.
With the ability to choose his platform year before hitting free agency, he gave himself a chance to build off last season. So as the Cubs were in talks with the Astros about acquiring Tucker at the winter meetings, trade rumors about Bellinger swirled.
“I think it’s always nice that teams want you,” Bellinger’s agent, Scott Boras, said at his annual winter meetings news conference last week. “Whenever a player is in this situation, there’s always an expectancy. But we also know that where Cody’s at in his career, what his contract is, I think he’s going to be going to a very competitive team if it happens. And if he stays in Chicago, that will be a place he’s very welcome.”
The Tucker acquisition made the Yankees a natural fit as the Cubs’ next trade partner. They’d already lost outfielder Juan Soto, this offseason’s top free agent, to the Mets, and reportedly had been talking with the Astros about adding Tucker themselves.
Considering Bellinger’s ability in center field, the Yankees now have the option to slide Aaron Judge back to right field. They also have an opening at first base.
Cubs trade Thaiss to White Sox
The Cubs traded catcher Matt Thaiss to the White Sox for cash on Tuesday, the teams announced.
Thaiss' Cubs tenure lasted less than a month. The team had acquired him from the Angels, also for cash, after they designated him for assignment in late November. But the Cubs had been looking for a more veteran catcher to pair with Miguel Amaya. They found him in Carson Kelly, who they signed to a two-year deal on Friday.