The New York Yankees have finally made a splash in free agency this offseason.
New York signed outfielder and first baseman Cody Bellinger to a five-year, $162.5 million deal on Jan. 21, per Jeff Passan of ESPN.
According to Passan, there are opt-outs after the second and third seasons, a $20 million signing bonus and a full no-trade clause.
This means that Bellinger will effectively make $85 million in the first two seasons of his contract. With a $32.5 million Average Annual Value, Bellinger will be making slightly less than he would’ve hoped.
The Scott Boras client had been looking to reunite with the Yankees all offseason, and now he has done just that. While Bellinger and Boras were hoping for a longer-term deal, the Yankees refused to budge on their offer.
What Does Bellinger Bring to the New York Yankees?
Yankees fans are already familiar with what Bellinger can do.
Bellinger enjoyed one of his best seasons since winning the NL MVP with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2019. In 152 games, Bellinger hit .272 with 29 home runs and 98 runs driven in. Mainly batting behind three-time MVP Aaron Judge, Bellinger had an .813 OPS.
This was, however, a far cry from his Rookie of the Year and MVP seasons. Since his MVP season, he had a significant drop-off from 2020-22. In 2023, he enjoyed a successful year with the Chicago Cubs, but once again failed to produce at an elite level in 2024.
However, what separated Bellinger from his previous years was his effectiveness against left-handed pitching. In 2025, he led all left-handed hitters in on-base percentage and slugging against left-handed pitchers.
His defense was also elite, having seven Outs Above Average, good for the 93rd percentile, per Baseball Savant. What was even more impressive was that Bellinger played all three outfield positions and first base.
Bellinger was New York’s second-most valuable player in 2025, per fWAR.
He is also the fifth player the Yankees have re-signed this offseason, joining Trent Grisham, Ryan Yarbrough, Amed Rosario and Paul Blackburn.
With the Yankees having a mostly quiet offseason so far, it was essential for the team to re-sign Bellinger.
But how does this affect the team?
How Does Bellinger Affect the Team Plans for 2026?
Bellinger should go back to being the Yankees’ everyday left fielder, where he started 59 games last season. Judge should go back to being the primary right fielder and Grisham will be the primary center fielder.
But while this is a great outfield, it keeps young star Jasson Dominguez from an everyday role once again.
While the organization was hoping to have the switch-hitting phenom become their everyday left fielder, that will have to wait.
In his rookie year, Dominguez struggled defensively and against right-handed pitching. In 123 games, Dominguez hit .257 with a .719 OPS and just 10 home runs.
The former top 50 prospect has struggled to make an impact at the major league level, and now will have to fight for playing time.
New York may have to end the Martian experiment to improve their team at other positions.
While bringing back Bellinger is a good sign for the Yankees’ 2026 hopes, it may lead to them trading one of the more promising prospects of the last decade for New York.
Yankees Bring Back Star Outfielder: Report