The New York Yankees made a significant financial investment that could be a risky one, but keeps Cody Bellinger in the building.
The New York Yankees were at a standstill after offering what they believed to be a fair deal to outfielder Cody Bellinger for weeks, and the stalled talks led to the Yankees starting to put feelers out elsewhere in the trade market. Ultimately, that standoff ended on Wednesday, with New York reportedly re-signing Bellinger to a slightly sweeter deal than what was reportedly their last offer. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Yankees agreed to terms with Bellinger on a five-year, $162.5 million contract. It includes opt outs after the second and third seasons and has a full no-trade clause. Bellinger also reportedly receives a $20 million signing bonus.
The reported offer preceding the official one was the same number of years, but slightly less at $160 million. This deal has an average annual value of $32.5 million, which isn’t bad when looking at recent deals across the league for Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker and Bo Bichette, though the full no-trade clause was a bit unexpected. It figures to put Bellinger back as the primary left fielder despite backing former top prospect Jasson Dominguez as their every-day left fielder.
Here is the full story from Yankees Roundtable writer Matthew Schmidt on the deal that carries financial risk, but why it was one that needed to be done by New York.
Bellinger slashed .272/.334/.480 with 29 homers, 98 RBI, and a .813 OPS. However, he is one of the best defenders in baseball. Bellinger had seven outs above average (OAA) and eight defensive runs saved (DRS) in 2025 between the three outfield positions and first base. The lineup would have had a major void without Bellinger, but it’s not a deal that’s without risk due to his age and extensive injury history.