MESA, Ariz. — As Cubs players woke up Sunday morning, many opened their phones to some news they had been hopeful and optimistic to see — the return of Cody Bellinger.

News of his reported signing broke early Sunday morning, long after many had unplugged for the night.

“I think, kind of like everyone else, woke up this morning, saw it on Twitter,” veteran Kyle Hendricks said. “Just so excited, man. I think you see the reactions in here. We’ve always been hoping for it, not expecting it in any way, but we’ve known where he’s at, we know how much he wanted to be here and just to get it figured out for both sides is just so amazing.”

There was a lively buzz in the Cubs clubhouse Sunday morning with the news. It was a “show-and-go” day at camp — there was a light workout late in the morning before the Cactus League matchup with the Padres at Sloan Park. But Bellinger was there, presumably to partake in his medical and catch up with some of his teammates.

“I saw him just a couple of minutes ago,” Madrigal said prior to Sunday’s game. “I was gonna shoot him a text, but then saw him here at the clubhouse. I wasn’t expecting him to be here this early, but he was here joking around with the guys and so it was nice to see him again.”

All of Spring Training, the Cubs preached internal improvements as their way of taking a step forward in 2024, believing that young players with more experience and prospects knocking on the door could help them build upon an 83-win season.

“Internal options have never been like the sexiest thing in the world, it’s never the flashiest thing,” Dansby Swanson said. “But there are so many great young kids here that go about it the right way, that ask the right questions, that want to learn, want to grow and have a lot of ability, and that’s rare. You don’t see that too many places.”

Now, the Cubs have a former MVP, known for his clubhouse skills to help guide that young core, too.

“There’s who he is as a baseball player and that’s, obviously, massive for us,” Nico Hoerner said. “But then just his presence within the clubhouse, in the lineup, I feel like makes everybody else better and it’s not really a measurable thing.”

The dynamic around the clubhouse on Sunday was a sense of wholeness — the team is fully assembled and with over a month to go before Opening Day, allows plenty of time for the team to gel.

“We kind of always felt like [the team was complete] in a way, but Belli was a unique situation,” Hendricks said. “He’s one of us. There was a little void in here for sure before he came back.”

[WATCH: Analyzing Cody Bellinger’s reported return to the Cubs]

Cubs drop first Cactus League contest

The Cubs suffered their first loss in Cactus League play, falling to the Padres 7-0 at Sloan Park. Starter Javier Assad allowed 3 runs on 3 hits with a pair of walks in 1.1 innings of work. It was Assad’s first outing of the spring.

He, like many others, is being stretched out to start. The team plans to decide on the roles of Assad, Drew Smyly, Jordan Wicks and Hayden Wesneski, among others, by the time camp breaks.

Next Up

The Cubs travel to Surprise, Ariz. on Monday to take on the Royals at 2 p.m. Hayden Wesneski will take the bump for the Cubs in his spring debut.

Michael Busch — who was acquired in a trade last month from the Dodgers and is expected to man first base for the Cubs — didn’t appear in a game for the third straight day. He was dealing with some shoulder soreness, but manager Craig Counsell said he expects Busch to be in the lineup on Monday.