This 'salary dump' Cody Bellinger trade could help both the Cubs and Diamondbacks

According to Ken Rosenthal, the Chicago Cubs 'want to trade' Cody Bellinger. The former Rookie of the Year and MVP surprised many, opting into the second year of the deal he signed with the Cubs late last offseason at a price tag of $27.5 million for the 2025 season.

That contract complicates trading Bellinger, whose production tailed off from his bounceback 2023 campaign making him a pretty clearly overpaid player - to the extent that the Scott Boras client chose not to head back out into free agency this winter, despite the fact he would have been arguably the best all-around outfield option outside of Juan Soto.

As Rosenthal and Cubs beat writer Sahadev Sharma laid out, at this point, the Cubs would likely have to settle for a bad contract swap or 'marginal' prospects in a Bellinger trade. For the record, I'm not in the camp of trading him just for the sake of 'change'. The only way you should move him is if it demonstrably improves the team's chances of making the postseason in 2025.

With rumors flying, a Cody Bellinger trade is feeling more likely by the day

But, based on the verbiage that's being tossed around, that may not be the thinking in the front office. So if you're going to entertain a swap of bad contracts, given the Cubs' focus on shoring up the pitching staff, Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Jordan Montgomery stands out as a potential target.

Montgomery was bad - and I mean really bad - in his first season with the Diamondbacks. Carrying an ERA north of 6.00, he allowed more than 11 hits per nine and looked completely lost on the mound. To the surprise of no one, this winter, he picked up his player option for 2025 which comes with a $22.5 million price tag - and was promptly raked over the coals by Arizona owner Ken Kendrick, who said signing the veteran was a 'horrible decision'.

Prior to 2024, though, Montgomery was a solid rotation piece, averaging 3.1 bWAR per season from 2021 to 2023 and putting together an impressive October resume in the process. In theory, that would appeal to a team with supposed postseason aspirations heading into next season like the Cubs.

Slotting him in behind the likes of Shota Imanaga, who finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting in his rookie season, Justin Steele and Jameson Taillon would give Chicago a solidly above-average mix of starters. Rounding out the rotation with another offseason addition via trade or free agency, taking the pressure off the young arms, could really lengthen the staff.

A contract swap of Bellinger-for-Montgomery could be difficult for the Diamondbacks, but with Christian Walker and Joc Pederson coming off the books, perhaps not impossible. Bellinger comes with a $32.5 million price tag ($27.5 million salary + $5 million buyout) or a $55 million all-in number that spans through the end of the 2026 season (assuming he opts in again next winter).

That's a lot of money for a franchise like the Diamondbacks, but Bellinger could slot into that lineup nicely given his ability to play multiple outfield spots and first base. Perhaps more importantly, it lets the hellish marriage between Montgomery and the team draw to an early close, allowing both sides to move on ahead of spring training.

Nobody really seems sure what Bellinger will be offensively next year. If he returns to the elite production he gave the Cubs in 2023 (which is possible given the way Wrigley Field impacted offensive performance this year), that price tag becomes far more palatable. The same can be said for Montgomery: $22.5 million on what amounts to a one-year deal won't cripple the Cubs - and it frees up $10 million they could potentially allocate elsewhere.

Again, I don't love moving Bellinger out of some longing for change after watching largely the same Cubs team fall short each of the last two years. But if that's the world we're living in, this could be a match on the trade market that helps two teams address some areas of concern early in the offseason.