Cubs Rumors: Jon Heyman says Cubs are now the favorites to land Cody Bellinger

Other than the addition of skipper Craig Counsell, there has been nothing in the department of offseason additions for the Chicago Cubs this winter. However, MLB insider Jon Heyman named the Cubs as the favorites to land superstar Cody Bellinger during an appearance on Bleacher Report.

To say that Cubs fans are eager for Jed Hoyer to do something is a massive understatement, especially if you poke around X (formerly Twitter) these days. It's understandable considering the North Side club is the only team in the league yet to add a free agent or acquire a player via trade this offseason. With the New York Yankees going all-in on Juan Soto and the Los Angeles Dodgers having already shelled out more than a billion dollars, the big spenders are essentially off the board.

Since Bellinger effectively resurrected his career with the Cubs and the team is in desperate need of a power-hitting lefty, it makes too much sense not to bring back the 28-year-old, no matter how much it costs (within reason). Not only would the on-field product improve immensely, a significant investment into a player like Bellinger would show how serious the team is in terms of competing to win the NL Central in 2024 and beyond. The guy is a true five-tool player and the team's offensive production suffered immensely when he was sidelined with injury last summer.

After the whole debacle involving false reports of Shohei Ohtani traveling to Toronto only to sign with the Dodgers a day later, it's hard to take any insider's word right now. Even though the field may look like its clearing for the Cubs to sign Bellinger, I'm not believing anything until I see Jeff Passan fire off a Tweet. That being said, I do like the Cubs' chances right now more than I did at the beginning of the offseason, so take that for what it's worth.