After much delay, Cody Bellinger has decided that he’s coming back to the Bronx.
The outfielder and the Yankees have brought an end to Bellinger’s prolonged free agency, agreeing to a five-year contract.
Jeff Passan first reported the contract, which is still pending a physical.
Earlier this offseason, the 30-year-old declined a $25 million player option for 2026. That expected decision followed a splendid first season in pinstripes, as Bellinger slashed .272/.334/.480 with 29 home runs, 98 RBI, 13 stolen bases and a 125 wRC+ over 152 games before hitting .214 with a homer and four RBI over seven postseason contests.
Acquired from the Cubs last winter as a key piece in the Yankees’ post-Juan Soto pivot, Bellinger mainly hit third behind Aaron Judge – the American League MVP – played all three outfield positions and briefly spent time at first base. With a left-handed swing suited for Yankee Stadium, he also seemed to fit in well with teammates and earned admiration from Aaron Boone for his “blue collar-ish” attitude.
When the Bombers’ season came to an end in the ALDS, Bellinger made it known that he would “absolutely” be interested in remaining with the Yankees, who employed his father, Clay, from 1999-2001.
“I had an unbelievable time putting on this uniform,” added Bellinger, who figures to be the Yankees’ primary left fielder with center fielder Trent Grisham returning via the qualifying offer. “Yankee Stadium, the fans, the organization, the culture that these guys have created in this locker room, it really is special. It’s such a fun group. It was a fun group to be a part of.”
Brian Cashman, meanwhile, had been rather forward about the Yankees’ desire to re-sign the 2019 MVP this offseason. “We’d love to have him back if it could fit for us,” Cashman said during the Winter Meetings. The comment came roughly a month after Scott Boras, Bellinger’s agent, said his client and the Yankees were “an ideal fit.”
However, negotiations stalled for a while as Bellinger and Boras pushed for a seven-year deal in a market that hasn’t yielded such length for other position players.
But even as talks stagnated, the end result still seemed the likeliest, as Bellinger and the Yankees were such a great pairing last season that the club made the veteran its top priority this winter. That remained the case as Kyle Tucker, a better and younger but more expensive corner outfielder, also lingered on the open market.
Tucker, who reached a four-year, $240 million contract with the Dodgers, garnered trade interest from the Yankees last offseason while a member of the Astros, but he was traded to the Cubs before Chicago sent Bellinger and $5 million to New York in a salary dump that netted nothing more than Cody Poteet.
Now Bellinger has the nine-figure, long-term deal he’s sought after previous trips to free agency yielded prove-it and option-heavy contracts with the Cubs. Those followed some injury-riddled, down years with the Dodgers.
There is some concern over how Bellinger, a two-time All-Star with a lifetime .817 OPS and 119 wRC+, will age at the plate, as a few of his quality of contact metrics, including xwOBA, expected average and expected slugging, are already hovering around the 50th percentile. Meanwhile, his 88.3-mph average exit velocity, 7.5 Barrel%, 37.9 Hard-Hit% and 70.1-mph bat speed all ranked in the 36th percentile or worse in 2025.
However, the Yankees appreciated Bellinger’s ability to tailor his approach to the situation this past season, as he demonstrated that he can vary between slugging the ball, slapping it, and simply putting it in play as needed.
“He can shorten up and go the other way, or he can take you deep pull side,” Yankees teammate Max Fried said. “He’s two different types of hitters, and you just gotta make pitches and hope he gets himself out.”
With Bellinger and Grisham back in the fold and Judge cemented in right, the Yankees can now dangle young outfielders Jasson Domínguez and Spencer Jones in trade talks with their rotation still standing to benefit from the addition of a frontline starter.
Domínguez, 22, is coming off his first full big league campaign. The switch-hitter entered the 2025 season as the Yankees’ everyday left fielder, but he struggled defensively and from the right side of the plate. With Bellinger and Grisham warranting everyday reps, Domínguez became a seldom-used bench piece by season’s end.
In an effort to improve his defense and right-side swing, The Martian played in the Dominican Winter League for the Escogido Baseball Club earlier this offseason.
Jones, a center fielder, spent the early part of his offseason working out at Yankee Stadium after the top-100 prospect put together a monstrous year at the plate in 2025.
Tasked with repeating Double-A after a strikeout-heavy 2024, the 24-year-old lefty responded with 35 home runs, a .274 average, a .932 OPS, 80 RBI and 29 stolen bases while earning a promotion to Triple-A midway through the year.
Yet strikeouts were still an issue for Jones, who also battled back spasms during the season, as he posted a 35.4 K%. His 72% in-zone contact rate, meanwhile, would have been the worst in the majors. Throw in Jones’ 6-7 frame, and it is tough to predict what type of hitter he will be in the majors.
Perhaps that question will be left for another team to answer, as Cashman already acknowledged the possibility of Jones – or Domínguez – becoming expendable if Bellinger and Grisham stayed with the Yankees.
“If both come back,” Cashman said in November, “then maybe it creates trade flexibility.”
