Yankees Catcher Adds Worrying Comment to Cody Bellinger's Post

The New York Yankees are in a bit of a stalemate. They're hanging their hopes for 2026 on a reunion with outfielder Cody Bellinger, but also refusing to offer him a contract longer than five years. While it's rumored that the veteran is close to signing the Yankees' offer, fans are worried that's not exactly the case after a recent post.

Bellinger (@cody_bellinger) made a recent post on Instagram that went without a caption, but showed off his offseason work in the gym. Yankees catcher Austin Wells (@awells) offered a simple comment that might indicate where the now top free agent could land: a single crying emoji.

Free agent outfielder Cody Bellinger — A screenshot of free agent Cody Bellinger's Instagram post from January 19, 2025 | Cody Bellinger

While the comment could mean anything, Yankees faithful in the comments were quick to over react and assume it meant the 30-year old is signing elsewhere. Bellinger and the Pinstripes have been dancing all offseason, with neither side seemingly willing to break down further.

In spite of Wells comments, the team might prevail. Before he signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers (Bellinger's former team), Kyle Tucker was considered to be the top free agent outfielder on the market, and many analysts figured Bellinger would take his contract cues from Tucker.

However, while Tucker is commanding an average annual value of $60 million, he's only signed for four years. That means that Bellinger, widely considered to be the weaker player of the two, likely won't be getting the seven year contract he'd reportedly been seeking. Instead, the offer on the table from the Yankees is reported to be five years and $160 million with "a huge signing bonus" according to The Athletic's Jim Bowden.

Will Cody Bellinger Accept the Yankees' Offer?

It makes sense that the Yankees want to bring a player like Bellinger back. He had a great year in 2025 with the Yankees, smacking 29 home runs and slashing .272/ .334/ .480 for an OPS of .814.

However, he has a history of being wildly inconsistent. His play for the Dodgers in 2019 earned him the NL MVP award that year but, just two years later, he was slashing .165/ .240/ .302 for an OPS of .542 in 95 games. Then, in 2023, Bellinger was named Comeback Player of the Year when he hit 26 homers and slashed .307/ .356/ .525 for an OPS of .881 with the Chicago Cubs.

Hopefully, if Bellinger does re-sign with the Yankees, history doesn't repeat itself. If it does, the team will be more than happy they didn't extend him the lengthy deal he was asking for.

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