Playing Matchmaker with Cody Bellinger and Top MLB Free Agents Still on the Board

With 2023 NL Cy Young winner Blake Snell and former NL MVP Cody Bellinger still on the market, MLB free agency has some juice left with one month to go until spring training starts.

There was always much more to this offseason than Shohei Ohtani's next destination and the Yoshinobu Yamamoto sweepstakes, even if this class was viewed to be more loaded on the pitching side.

The trade market has also been fascinating, as we saw Juan Soto land with the New York Yankees to change the complexion of the AL East, while players such as Corbin Burnes, Dylan Cease and Shane Bieber remain with their current teams amid rumors.

There are plenty of interesting names beyond Snell and Bellinger who remain on the market. We're going to look at the top of the list and play matchmaker for nine players left on the board.

The focus is on team fit, rumored interest and contract predictions. Let's get into it.

Match: Seattle Mariners

Contract: Two years, $35 million

Joc Pederson did not necessarily live up to his $19.7 million qualifying offer with the San Francisco Giants last season, but he was good enough to garner interest from teams in need of a corner outfielder and designated hitter option.

The 31-year-old's .764 OPS in 2023 was down noticeably from his career-best 2022, when he was a second-time All-Star who slashed .274/.353/.521 with an .874 OPS.

The Seattle Mariners would settle for something in between. They have a need at his position after trading Jarred Kelenic and non-tendering Mike Ford.

The Mariners traded for Luke Raley and brought back Mitch Haniger to fill their corner outfield spots. But Pederson would provide another left-handed bat and much-needed depth in both the outfield and at DH for a lineup that could use more power.

A year ago, the Mariners looked like the AL West up-and-comer behind the Houston Astros. The World Series champion Texas Rangers have taken their place, so a short-term investment on Pederson to strengthen a middling offense would be worthwhile.

Match: Arizona Diamondbacks

Contract: Three years, $45 million

This one is a match made in heaven. The Diamondbacks managed to make it to the World Series despite below average slugging and home run fire power.

Arizona ranked 17th in slugging and 22nd in home runs last season. It was an impressive run to the NL pennant, but the D-backs need more thump in the lineup if they are to take the next step.

Jorge Soler, step right up. His power numbers are undeniable. His expected slugging percentage of .532 ranked among the best in baseball (96th percentile), and his barrel percentage is in the 91st percentile.

Soler's barrel rate has been at that clip or better for three of the last four seasons. The only year he underachieved in that area was 2021, when he was traded from the Kansas City Royals and later went on a tear to win World Series MVP for Atlanta.

Match: Chicago Cubs

Contract: One year, $20 million

Rhys Hoskins feels like an afterthought in free agency because of how the last year has gone. He was out of sight and out of mind while recovering from a torn ACL suffered during spring training.

It was his absence that allowed Bryce Harper to test out first base for the Phillies this past season. But as B/R's Joel Reuter pointed out on January 2, Hoskins is one of the more intriguing buy-low bats on the market.

The Cubs have money to spend and are expected to be one of the more aggressive teams this offseason. They want to bring back Cody Bellinger to a longer-term deal, while Hoskins is an affordable addition they should be able to sign to a much shorter contract with a fraction of the risk attached.

Hoskins, 30, is a notable upgrade at either first base or designated hitter for the Cubs. He hit 30 home runs and posted a 123 OPS+ in the Phillies' run to the 2022 World Series.

Match: New York Mets

Contract: Two years, $30 million

Wherever J.D. Martinez lands, the team is getting one of the best designated hitters in the game. At age 35, he jumped into a time machine to hit 33 home runs for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season.

It was the most home runs and the first time he knocked in more than 100 runs since the 2019 season with the Boston Red Sox. His overall slash line was .271/.321/.572 for a 134 OPS+ with 103 RBI in 113 games.

Martinez is one of the more dangerous hitters in terms of hard-hit rate, average exit velocity and expected slugging, all of which is consistent with his career production.

This brings us to the Mets, which have a clear need at DH. Daniel Vogelbach was non-tendered early in the offseason, but even with him, they ranked 19th in fWAR and home runs at DH. New York ranked 21st in slugging percentage at DH.

Jon Heyman reported for The New York Post in December that the Mets are among the teams eyeing Martinez.

Match: San Francisco Giants

Contract: Six years, $150 million

The San Francisco Giants have been targeting third base since the offseason started and still have yet to address the position.

Adding Matt Chapman would give them one of the hardest-hitting and best defensive third basemen in the game.

Power is one area in which the Giants were lacking last season. Only three teams had a worse slugging percentage than San Francisco.

The Giants were also in the bottom half in home runs. Inserting Chapman into the lineup gives them someone capable of hitting 25-30 home runs in a season without losing what J.D. Davis provides defensively.

There is also the familiarity between Chapman and Giants management. New skipper Bob Melvin managed the 30-year-old for five seasons with the Oakland Athletics.

The Giants can't really afford another underwhelming offseason after whiffing on Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa last year. Chapman is a far cry from that level of star, but he is a four-time Gold Glove winner who leads all defenders in Defensive Runs Saved over the last six seasons.

Even with a shaky batting average and high strikeout rate, the power numbers and defense are worth the investment for a San Francisco squad trying to stay afloat in a competitive NL West.

Giants fans would feel much better about this offseason if Chapman arrives alongside new free-agent additions Jordan Hicks and Jung Hoo Lee.

Match: Texas Rangers

Contract: Six years, $150 million

It's been quiet on Jordan Montgomery, though there are some high-paying suitors linked to the southpaw.

Heyman lists the Boston Red Sox, Giants, Los Angeles Angels and Yankees as five teams interested in the 31-year-old. But he's also pointed out how a reunion with the Rangers has always made sense for Montgomery, who Heyman accurately dubbed "their Astros killer."

He pitched to a 2.90 ERA in six appearances during the Rangers' championship run. Speaking of that run, it's the aggressiveness in free agency that led them to becoming a contender in the first place. No use in changing the strategy now.

Without Montgomery or someone to replace him, the Rangers' rotation behind Nathan Eovaldi is far from reliable between 40-year-old Max Scherzer, Jon Gray, Andrew Heaney and Dane Dunning.

Scherzer's back surgery on a herniated disc is expected to keep him out until at least June or July, so there is a clear need for Montgomery in Texas. Jacob deGrom will be recovering from Tommy John surgery for the majority of the year as well.

Match: New York Yankees

Contract: Five years, $100 million

The New York Yankees have already taken a swing and miss at Blake Snell. Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported they fell about $100 million short of his asking price to bolster their rotation.

What seems perfectly within the Yankees' price range is Josh Hader as their closer. In some ways, it may look like settling if the goal is really to strengthen the pitching staff of the front end.

But adding the 29-year-old is a cheaper option to still improve the group overall by making the bullpen so much deeper. Signing Hader allows Clay Holmes to move into a setup role, creating quite the one-two punch to close games.

The Yankees' trade for Juan Soto suggests they plan to score runs and play with leads often enough to increase the value of a closer like Hader.

Since 2017, no other relief pitcher has a higher fWAR than Hader (11.3). His 2.50 ERA and 15.01 strikeouts per nine innings is also the best among relievers since 2017.

Match: Chicago Cubs

Contract: Seven years, $175 million

All signs seem to be pointing toward Cody Bellinger returning to the Cubs. They have money to spend with a clear need and interest in the two-time All-Star.

The only major move the Cubs have made this offseason is the reasonable four-year, $53 million contract for Japanese starter Shōta Imanaga. While that's a decent enough splash, it's not nearly enough for Chicago, which wants to make the leap from good to great in 2024.

Losing Bellinger without nearly an adequate enough replacement is not the way to do it.

Then look at the 28-year-old's market, where once-possible landing spots seem far less likely. The Yankees, Giants and Toronto Blue Jays have all made moves to strengthen their outfields.

Meanwhile, the Cubs are sitting there as the heavy favorites to land Bellinger.

Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer told reporters: "We'll have a lot of conversations with him. It's going to be a process. It's going to play out for a while. I think the world of Cody, and we're certainly going to be in communication."

Now, we wait.

The Cubs did trade for 26-year-old Michael Busch from the Dodgers. He played 2B in L.A. but has plenty of experience at 1B, yet that shouldn't deter them from bringing back one of the biggest reasons Chicago almost beat out the Diamondbacks for the final NL wild-card spot in 2023.

Match: Toronto Blue Jays

Contract: Seven years, $210 million

The Toronto Blue Jays understand they must do something to bolster a team that has fallen short of its high hopes for a few seasons.

They were in the Ohtani sweepstakes, which shows a commitment to spending money to upgrade the roster. Pitching was a strength for Toronto in 2023, and adding Blake Snell to the top of the rotation would propel it to one of the best in baseball.

USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported teams are trying to see if Snell's price goes down, while Toronto quietly monitors the market. The Blue Jays are also lurking in the Cody Bellinger market, according to Nightengale, which further indicates a sense of urgency.

Snell had been linked to the Yankees and Giants earlier in the offseason. But the former signed Marcus Stroman and the latter traded for Robbie Ray from the Seattle Mariners.

While the rotation was not necessarily a point of emphasis for Toronto this offseason, the lesson of 2023 is that you can never have too many good arms in pursuit of a World Series title. It would also make Alek Manoah a trade candidate.

The fit here makes sense as more time passes and especially if Snell's price drops.