{"id":525469,"date":"2026-01-17T19:33:20","date_gmt":"2026-01-17T19:33:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/525469\/"},"modified":"2026-01-17T19:33:20","modified_gmt":"2026-01-17T19:33:20","slug":"mlb-rumors-ny-mets-target-cody-bellinger-after-signing-bo-bichette-amid-ny-yankees-competition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/525469\/","title":{"rendered":"MLB Rumors: NY Mets target Cody Bellinger after signing Bo Bichette amid NY Yankees competition"},"content":{"rendered":"

The New York Mets<\/a> are making aggressive moves this offseason, fresh off signing Bo Bichette<\/a> to a three-year, $126 million deal. The addition of Bichette, including opt-out options after the first two seasons, immediately reshapes New York\u2019s infield plans and opens questions about how the team might pursue additional offensive firepower.<\/p>\n

Despite landing Bichette, the Mets still have financial flexibility, and free-agent Cody Bellinger<\/a> remains a tantalizing option. Industry insiders note that the team could pursue Bellinger without compromising their recent high-profile signing, creating the possibility of a major roster upgrade.<\/p>\n

According to CBS Sports\u2019 Lewis Brinson, \u201cI think they\u2019re still in the sweepstakes for Mr. Bellinger\u2026 I don\u2019t think they\u2019re out on Cody Bellinger.\u201d Meanwhile, the Mets would need to contend with the New York Yankees<\/a>, who reportedly offered Bellinger a five-year deal worth at least $30 million per season.<\/p>\n

How will Bellinger fit into the Mets\u2019 roster plans?<\/p>\n

Former MLB GM Jim Duquette praised the Mets\u2019 strategic move with Bichette and outlined how Bellinger could complement the existing lineup. \u201cExcellent move\u2026 Bichette is a really good player. And yes, he is going to play third base, likely. And [Brett] Baty would move over to first base,\u201d Duquette said.<\/p>\n

\"Cody<\/p>\n

Cody Bellinger #35 of the Yankees hits a single against the Blue Jays. Al Bello\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Mets\u2019 infield and lineup flexibility\"NY<\/p>\n

see also<\/p>\n

NY Mets reportedly decide Bo Bichette\u2019s defensive role after blockbuster signing<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Duquette further explained the infield configuration post-Bichette: \u201cIf you look at taking him at third, and then Lindor at short, [Marcus] Semien in at second, Baty, and maybe [Mark] Vientos at first, the DH spot becomes [Jorge] Polanco\u2026 That\u2019s a good upgrade for them all the way around. And you got a nice young player.\u201d<\/p>\n

SurveyWill the Mets land Cody Bellinger this offseason?<\/p>\n

Will the Mets land Cody Bellinger this offseason?<\/p>\n

The Mets\u2019 front office now faces key decisions in balancing roster spots, maximizing defensive coverage, and potentially outbidding the Yankees for Bellinger. The outcome of this pursuit could define the Mets\u2019 lineup for the 2026 season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The New York Mets are making aggressive moves this offseason, fresh off signing Bo Bichette to a three-year,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":525470,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2376],"tags":[5,1365,4,1690,61,62,2548,2547,142],"class_list":{"0":"post-525469","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-yankees","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-cody-bellinger","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-mets","13":"tag-new-york-yankees","14":"tag-newyork","15":"tag-newyorkyankees","16":"tag-yankees"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115912115337184207","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525469","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=525469"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525469\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/525470"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=525469"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=525469"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=525469"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}