Outfielder Cody Bellinger has been acquired by the New York Yankees from the Chicago Cubs for right-hander Cody Poteet
Chicago will send the Yankees $5 million as part of the trade.
The 29-year-old Bellinger, whose father Clay helped the Yankees win World Series titles in 1999 and 2000, could play center field next year as Aaron Judge returns to right following the departure of Juan Soto to the Mets. Bellinger also can play first base, a position that opened when Anthony Rizzo became a free agent.
Bellinger is owed $27.5 million in 2025 under the first of two player options as part of an $80 million, three-year contract. The two-time All-Star also has a $25 million player option for 2026 with a $5 million buyout that would be payable in equal installments on Jan. 15, 2026, and Jan. 15, 2027.
Bellinger batted .266 with 18 homers and 78 RBIs in 130 games this year. He was on the injured list from April 24 to May 7 with a broken right rib.
He drove in 33 runs in his last 39 games of the season, but Chicago finished with an 83-79 record.
Bellinger made his major league debut in 2017 and spent his first six seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was the NL MVP in 2019, batting .305 with 47 homers and 115 RBIs in 156 games. He also helped LA win the World Series in 2020.
He was cut by the Dodgers in November 2022 and signed a $17.5 million, one-year deal with Chicago a month later. He regained his form with the Cubs, hitting a career-best .307 with 26 homers, 97 RBIs and 20 steals in 130 games last season year.
Bellinger is a .259 hitter with 196 homers and 597 RBIs in 1,005 games. He turns 30 in July.
Poteet, 30, made his major league debut with Miami in 2021, had Tommy John surgery on Aug. 17, 2022, returned to the mound with Kansas City’s Triple-A Omaha farm team on Sept. 23, 2023, was released by the Royals and signed with the Yankees last January. He went 3-0 with a 2.22 ERA in four starts and one relief appearance during a season in which he was sidelined between June 12 and Sept. 25 by a strained right triceps.
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Yankees Rumors: Anthony Santander hints emerge as NYY talk to 4 first basemen
Behold, the Cody Bellinger trade has finally been pushed across the finish line. Will they? Won’t they? And can’t they find someone else more productive and less expensive instead? No matter; they did it, only Cody Poteet to Chicago, in exchange for Bellinger and a bit of cash.
Whether you’re in love with the addition or not, Bellinger’s versatility and ability to play both center field and first base could make a valuable impact on the Bronx Bombers’ depth chart. Still, his worrisomely low exit velocity and long swing counteract some of that optimism. While Bob Nightengale reported that the team views him primarily as a center fielder, Chris Kirschner refuted that decision being made later in the evening. Regardless, does Jasson Dominguez play left? Who fills first? While the details of the trade were being ironed out, the Yankees appeared to be considering investing in “first base only” alternatives.
According to MLB insider Bob Nightengale, they’re “engaged in talks” with Pete Alonso, Christian Walker, Carlos Santana, and Paul Goldschmidt. Santana will be 39 on Opening Day, and Goldschmidt will be 37. Those are more than likely one-year deals.
Now, are these expired leverage plays, or real options?
While the New York Yankees are at a stalemate with the Chicago Cubs for OF/1B Cody Bellinger, they have turned their attention to the first-base market.
They are engaged in talks with 4 free-agent first basemen: Pete Alonso, Christian Walker, Carlos Santana and Paul Goldschmidt.— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 17, 2024
Yankees Rumors: NYY turned attention to Pete Alonso, Christian Walker, Paul Goldschmidt, Carlos Santana during boring Cody Bellinger talks
Jon Heyman, in particular, has been beating the “Alonso-Yankees” drum for a while. It’s certainly the simplest way to get direct revenge on the Mets for swiping Juan Soto, but that’s also an oddly unnecessary thing to covet. Alonso has always made the most sense for the Mets; he’d be redundant and clunky in a Yankees lineup built around selling out for power. It’s somewhat appealing if his price dips, but the Mets likely need him more.
Walker, purportedly, was close to agreeing with the Yankees at the Winter Meetings, though those rumors now seem ludicrously overblown. He’s in his mid-30s and has suffered from oblique issues, but you won’t find a better glove. Unfortunately, you won’t get the lost draft picks back if you sign him, either. Due to the Max Fried addition, the Yankees are in double jeopardy here.
That leaves Santana and Goldschmidt, likely the cheapest options, but also the ones that provide the least certainty. Is Goldschmidt an MVP candidate mid-rebound, or a Hall of Fame slugger in his later years, a la Pudge Rodriguez in 2008? Will this be another sturdy year for Santana, or the final nail in his decline coffin?
Walker probably has the highest upside and highest floor. Alonso has the highest name recognition. But oh … what’s this? Part-time first baseman Anthony Santander has entered the fray, too?
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