The Chicago Cubs pursuit of Cody Bellinger seems to be strong as they’re the favorite to land the left-handed power hitter, according to Jon Heyman of The New York Post.

“I think the favorite right now has to be the Cubs for Bellinger… But to me, look, the Cubs haven’t done anything except for the manager. Do we really expect them to end up doing nothing?”

As the offseason continues, teams are falling out of the race for Bellinger. His services likely aren’t needed anymore with the New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays after their recent moves. Others are still involved, but it’s looking likely that he could land with the Cubs once again.

This offseason has been slow for Chicago, even disappointing at times.

With Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Juan Soto all available via free agency or trade, the Cubs not landing one of them hurts.

With the addition of Craig Counsell, the belief was that the front office was willing to spend big. That could still be the case, although that hasn’t been shown thus far.

Free agency has been slow, which could be the reason why they haven’t made any move of significance yet. Bellinger could be the player that gets the market moving around the league.

If the Cubs plan on competing in 2024, they need Bellinger on the roster.

The only way they could lose him and still contend is if they replace him with a similar talent. At the moment, there isn’t anyone of his caliber out there. Unless they make a trade, Bellinger will be the top available player for the club to go after.

The former MVP proved his worth last season. After a few disappointing years offensively, the bat came back around. It looks like he found his swing again in 2023 and that’s what Chicago needs to hope for if they sign him to a long-term contract.