The Seattle Mariners will not trade Cody Bellinger as he has been dealt to the Yankees

On December 18, 2024By Littum

On Tuesday, the Chicago Cubs traded former National League MVP Cody Bellinger to the New York Yankees in what amounts to a pure salary dump.

The Cubs are sending over $5 million total to the Yankees as they acquire reliever Cody Poteet.

BREAKING: OF/1B Cody Bellinger has been traded from the Chicago Cubs to the New York Yankees, sources tell ESPN. Bellinger, 29, is a former MVP and has two years left on his contract with an opt-out after 2025. The Yankees continue to be aggressive after Juan Soto.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) 17 December 2024

The Yankees have openings in the outfield after losing Juan Soto and Alex Verdugo this offseason, and they will reportedly use Bellinger in center field. The deal makes sense to them, and they have the financial flexibility to absorb Bellinger’s big deal.

This deal affects the Seattle Mariners in a few ways… First, the M’s will have to play Bellinger more often in 2025 since he’s in the American League. Second, he will have more influence on the M’s place in the standings, as he will also play against the teams that the M’s struggle with.

But most importantly, this move simply means the Mariners aren’t shopping Bellinger themselves. The Mariners reportedly checked in on Bellinger this offseason and have been linked to him for at least the last year.

The Mariners have a full outfield and have Luke Raley as a left-handed hitting first baseman, so the fit was always going to be a little awkward, but the reports were out there anyway. The M’s were arguably turned off by Bellinger’s contract, which could pay more than $50 million total over the next two seasons.

The 29-year-old Bellinger is coming off a year in which he hit .266 for the Cubs and hit 18 home runs. A lifetime .259 hitter, Bellinger is an eight-year veteran of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cubs. He won MVP in 2019 with the Dodgers when he hit 47 homers and drove in 115 runs.

He is a two-time All-Star.

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