Alexander Wilson
The negotiations dragged into late January. Scott Boras wanted seven years. Brian Cashman would not go past five. Two months of stalemate eventually produced a five-year, $162.5 million deal with opt-outs after the second and third seasons, front-loaded money, and enough structure to make the outcome tolerable for both sides regardless of how the back end ages. The New York Yankees got their guy. Eight games into the season, that decision looks very good.
Bellinger launched a two-run homer in the fifth inning Saturday night against the Marlins as part of a 9-7 comeback win that pushed the Yankees to 7-1. The full recap covers how the offense found its footing in a game that required real contributions from the middle of the lineup, and Bellinger delivered exactly that.
On the season he is slashing .286/.400/.500, numbers that improve on what was already a strong 2025 and suggest the Yankees are getting the version of this player they paid for before April even ends.
Who Bellinger Actually Is
The career arc requires context because the public perception of Bellinger tends to get stuck in one of two places: either the 2019 NL MVP who looked like a perennial star, or the broken-down version that followed his shoulder injury during the 2020 World Series celebration and produced three consecutive seasons below .210. Both of those Bellingers existed. Neither tells the full story of the player the Yankees now have on a long-term deal.
His career numbers show a hitter who rebuilt himself entirely after the Cubs took a flier on him in 2023. He batted .307 that year with 26 home runs, won the Comeback Player of the Year Award, and reminded the industry of what his ceiling looked like when healthy and confident.
The Cubs traded him to the Yankees at the start of the 2025 offseason and the transition worked immediately. He appeared in 152 games, hit .272 with 29 home runs and 98 RBIs, and posted a .302 average at Yankee Stadium specifically, which is the number that likely sealed the extension. Left-handed power hitters who can pull the ball to right field in the Bronx tend to look good against a short porch, and Bellinger exploited it throughout the season.
The defense rarely gets the credit it deserves in the Bellinger conversation because the offense tends to dominate it. He is a legitimate above-average outfielder who covers significant ground in left field and has the arm and instincts to make plays that get glossed over in box scores. Over the first eight games, his defense has been one of the better stories in the lineup even as Aaron Judge and Ben Rice have drawn the offensive headlines.
What the Contract Structure Actually Means
The opt-outs after 2027 and 2028 are the underrated element of this deal. Bellinger turns 31 in July. If he continues producing at this level through the first two seasons, he almost certainly opts out after 2027 to reset his value on the open market. The Yankees keep two years of an excellent player and escape the risk of the final three years on an aging outfielder’s contract. If he underperforms, he stays on a front-loaded deal that was built to absorb some downside.
“When you get into a locker room where it’s about winning and doing it for each other, you don’t really want to leave it,” Bellinger said when he signed, per MLB.com. “Grass ain’t always greener on the other side.”
Through eight games, it looks like he made the right call. So did the Yankees.
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