{"id":526060,"date":"2026-01-18T05:05:30","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T05:05:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/526060\/"},"modified":"2026-01-18T05:05:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-18T05:05:30","slug":"blue-jays-under-pressure-in-cody-bellinger-chase-after-missing-out-on-bo-bichette-kyle-tucker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/526060\/","title":{"rendered":"Blue Jays under pressure in Cody Bellinger chase after missing out on Bo Bichette, Kyle Tucker"},"content":{"rendered":"

The MLB offseason continues to move at a fast pace, and fewer and fewer coveted free agents remain available. After losing Bo Bichette to the Mets and Kyle Tucker to the Dodgers, the Toronto Blue Jays still hold out hope of adding former New York Yankees star Cody Bellinger<\/a> to their roster.<\/p>\n

However, that hope could vanish in the blink of an eye, as they face competition from another key team: the Yankees themselves. So, what would happen if the Blue Jays<\/a> are ultimately unable to land Bellinger?<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Jays arguably are still a bat away from where they need to be, but the options are dwindling fast,\u201d MLB.com<\/a>\u2018s Will Leitch wrote. \u201cCody Bellinger is still out there, but if the Jays can\u2019t pry him away from the Yankees, Toronto might suddenly have some concerns with its lineup.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the days pass, one of the most sought-after free agents heading into the new MLB season still hasn\u2019t decided his future. Will he ultimately land with one of the latest World Series finalists, or will he bet on another stint in the Bronx?<\/p>\n

\"Cody<\/p>\n

Cody Bellinger #35 of the Yankees reacts after a double against the Red Sox.<\/p>\n

Bichette and Tucker take different paths<\/p>\n

The MLB offseason has been defined by massive short-term deals, headlined by Bo Bichette<\/a> joining the New York Mets and Kyle Tucker<\/a> signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers. <\/p>\n

\"MLB<\/p>\n

see also<\/p>\n

MLB Rumors: NY Mets target Cody Bellinger after signing Bo Bichette amid NY Yankees competition<\/p>\n

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

Bichette agreed to a three-year with the Mets<\/a>, $126 million contract ($42M AAV) with opt-outs after each of the first two seasons, as he prepares to shift to third base at Queens. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Dodgers secured Tucker<\/a> with a record-shattering four-year, $240 million deal ($60M AAV), featuring a $64 million signing bonus and $30 million in deferrals, further cementing Los Angeles as the most aggressive spenders in baseball history.<\/p>\n

Toronto\u2019s big moves<\/p>\n

The Toronto Blue Jays have taken an aggressive approach to the 2026 season, solidifying their roster with the blockbuster signing of Dylan Cease to a franchise-record seven-year, $210 million deal and the addition of Japanese star Kazuma Okamoto on a four-year, $60 million contract. <\/p>\n

While these moves significantly bolster their rotation and infield power, the Jays are not done yet; they continue to pivot their focus toward Cody Bellinger. By pursuing Bellinger\u2019s elite versatility and left-handed bat, Toronto aims to surround Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with enough firepower to reclaim the AL East and finish what they started after their 2025 World Series appearance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The MLB offseason continues to move at a fast pace, and fewer and fewer coveted free agents remain…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":526061,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2378],"tags":[5,377,2554,88,1365,29,4,62,282,70,2553],"class_list":{"0":"post-526060","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto-blue-jays","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-blue-jays","10":"tag-bluejays","11":"tag-bo-bichette","12":"tag-cody-bellinger","13":"tag-kyle-tucker","14":"tag-mlb","15":"tag-new-york-yankees","16":"tag-toronto","17":"tag-toronto-blue-jays","18":"tag-torontobluejays"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115914364395501311","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/526060","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=526060"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/526060\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/526061"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=526060"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=526060"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=526060"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}