The New York Mets are expected to heavily pursue Juan Soto in free agency. However, if they fail to bring him to Queens, they could swing a trade to land their backup plan.

FanSided's Zach Pressnell proposed this trade that brings Chicago Cubs star Cody Bellinger to New York as a Juan Soto "plan B," this winter:

Mets receive: outfielder/first basemen Cody Bellinger and cash considerations

Cubs receive: right-handed pitcher Blade Tidwell and infielder Marco Vargas

"The Cubs would be sending Bellinger and cash considerations, about half of his remaining contract, to the Mets in exchange for two top 15 prospects," wrote Pressnell. "The Mets get an outfielder for half his contract while the Cubs clear some much needed money off their payroll."

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal noted that the Cubs may want to trade Bellinger. He opted into the second year of his three-year, $80 million deal he signed last spring. His deal includes another player option after next season. If the Mets miss on Soto they could use the former National League Most Valuable Player.

"It's tough to predict Bellinger's value here, to a certain extent. His contract drops his value quite a bit, but if the Mets fail on Soto, they could become very desperate, thus driving his value back up," wrote Pressnell. "To compensate for all the unknowns, I met somewhere in the middle."

Tidwell is the Mets' No. 8 prospect and Vargas is No. 13 according to MLB Pipeline. The Cubs would be getting two talented young players while also dumping Bellinger's contract. If the Mets miss on Soto, its safe to assume they will retain Pete Alonso, meaning Bellinger would likely see very little time at first base.

Bellinger is nowhere at the level of Soto but would be a valuable addition to the Mets. He hit .266 with a 111 OPS+ last season. He is a two-time All-Star, Gold Glover, NL MVP and two-time Silver Slugger.