Minutes into Cody Bellinger’s first media availability since re-signing with the Yankees, the outfielder uttered a phrase that may have unintentionally triggered a segment of New York’s fanbase.
“I’m excited to run it back with those guys,” Bellinger said Wednesday, “and I’m fully confident in the group.”
While Bellinger was simply talking about his new contract, fans have used those same words — “run it back” — to describe the Yankees’ offseason, often in a derogatory way. Fans haven’t exactly been thrilled with a winter that has prioritized retaining members of last year’s squad, as Trent Grisham, Ryan Yarbrough, Paul Blackburn and Amed Rosario all returned in free agency as well. The latter three are depth pieces.
Of course, the offseason isn’t over, and there have been new additions. Most notably, the Yankees traded for Ryan Weathers, a probable backend starter, and Angel Chivilli, a bullpen project, while their competitive balance tax payroll soared well beyond $300 million. But some diehards are understandably unsatisfied with that haul, or lack thereof, after the Yankees boasted baseball’s best offense, won 94 games and tied the Blue Jays for the American League’s best record last year but fell short of a division title and got their teeth kicked in by Toronto in the ALDS.
With spring training rapidly approaching, this is more or less the same roster the Yankees ended 2025 with. One could even argue it’s worse after Devin Williams and Luke Weaver, important parts of the bullpen despite some struggles, signed with the Mets.
Brian Cashman, however, pushed back against the idea that his roster, which could still use a starter, bullpen help and a right-handed bench bat, is largely unchanged after Bellinger spoke over Zoom. In doing so, however, the general manager lumped in “weapons” he acquired ahead of the 2025 trade deadline — it’s almost February — a group that includes holdovers Rosario, David Bednar, Camilo Doval, Jake Bird, Ryan McMahon and José Caballero.
Cashman also alluded to some players who are expected to return from injury at various points this season, a list that includes Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt and Anthony Volpe. Keep in mind that Cole and Schmidt are coming off Tommy John surgery, which often comes with rust.
“First, we have really good players, a collection of really talented players. It’s not the same roster,” Cashman argued when asked about concern over a roster that is fairly static. “I would differ there. We have some players, at some point, returning from the IL that are important players, Gerrit Cole being one of them. But we had some additions from the second half that got their feet wet with the Yankees, some with failures or success. But they’ll now be in a position to join us with their feet on the ground and getting their sea legs under them – with a manager, too, learning how to utilize these guys, where they slot, and everything else.”
Cashman, as part of a lengthy response, went on to say that some of the aforementioned pieces are now familiar with the “New York arena,” the American League and postseason baseball in New York City, which could help them in 2026. It would also be fair to say that some of those players will put the Yankees in a better position on Opening Day than they were at the same point last year.
For example, McMahon took over third base midway through the 2025 campaign after the Yankees spent part of the first half overly reliant on Oswald Peraza, who belonged at Triple-A.
“So I disagree it’s the same team running it back,” Cashman continued. “It’s going to be some differences, and the competition is going to be different, too. In some cases, some teams got better. In other cases, some teams, you could argue, maybe got a little worse. Our division is the best in baseball. But long story short, one [playoff] series, make or break, is not going to define what we think our capabilities are.”
Yankees fans, starving for a championship since 2009, are going to dispute some of Cashman’s framing, and rightfully so. But if the 2026 Yankees are as capable as he insists, how many offseason moves or shiny new toys the team brought in will become an afterthought.
Aaron Boone, for one, has seemed comfortable returning a comparable roster all offseason. The manager, speaking between Bellinger and Cashman, repeated that, by the end of the 2025 regular season, he felt his squad was as good as any he’s had over his eight years as manager.
Then came the disappointment of a four-game ALDS defeat, but that hasn’t shaken Boone’s confidence in his core group.
“Obviously, we got beat up in the division round,” he said. “It didn’t go our way. But that doesn’t mean it’s not going to go our way the next time. We think we’re really good. It’s a long ways away. Doesn’t mean we’re going to go win 94 games again. It doesn’t mean we’re going to win 88. But we think we have the pieces.
“Our plan is to get back to the postseason and try and go win a world championship, and I think we have a roster that is capable of doing that, potentially. But it’s January. We got a lot of boxes to check, a lot of things to accomplish to get to that point, but I’m excited to take our chances with this group for sure.”
As things stand, the Yankees should be able to achieve that first goal of reaching the postseason with good health. However, it remains to be seen if they can overtake the Blue Jays, who had their number well before the playoffs last season, or the Dodgers, who have won back-to-back championships while financially redefining what it means to be an Evil Empire.
Bellinger, once a Dodger himself, noted that “anything can happen” and that baseball is the “most unpredictable game” when asked about his old employer. But the Yankees, playing in an improved AL East, haven’t exactly boosted their odds of overtaking L.A. or Toronto — two teams Cashman said the pinstripers are “gunning for” — on paper this offseason.
It’s a reasonable worry for the Bronx faithful as the organization continues to tout what it already had in the waning days of winter.
“I’ve been openly willing to challenge anybody that [says] we don’t have a championship caliber roster and team,” Cashman said, “and it’s our job to try to find ways to make it better along the way.
“Again, it’s just going to be a little bit of a different mix, a little different feel. Everything’s different. It’s a different year, and we’re looking for a different result, meaning a better result. So I guess stay tuned and see where it takes us. We’re excited by what we have and who they are, but I think you’ve heard me say many times: it doesn’t matter what we say. It matters what we do.”
