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Cody Bellinger Returns to Yankees on Five-Year Contract

The outfielder is reportedly staying in the Big Apple.
Patrick Andres|
Cody Bellinger enjoyed a terrific season for the Yankees in 2025.
Cody Bellinger enjoyed a terrific season for the Yankees in 2025. | Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

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New York Yankees

In the wake of an excellent 2025 season, Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger reportedly isn’t going anywhere.

Bellinger is returning to New York on a five-year contract worth $162.5 million, according to a Wednesday afternoon report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The deal, per Passan, comes with two opt-outs (after 2027 and 2028) and a no-trade clause along with a $20 million signing bonus.

The Arizona native—still just 30—has lived an eventful baseball life. In 2017, he hit 39 home runs and won the National League Rookie of the Year award for the Dodgers. He was even better by bWAR in 2018 before a monstrous 2019 season that saw. him slash .305/.406/.629 with 47 home runs and 115 RBIs.

After a severe pandemic-era decline, Bellinger found his groove with the Cubs in 2023, producing numbers similar to his early Los Angeles seasons. He stepped back in 2024 with Chicago before surging with the Yankees after a trade, slashing .272/.334/.480 with 29 home runs and 98 RBIs in a well-rounded ‘25 campaign.

New York is scheduled to open its season on March 25 against the Giants.

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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .

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