Yankees May Have Less Competition for Cody Bellinger Now

The New York Yankees and Mets were the two suitors for the versatile outfielder Cody Bellinger as of yesterday. One of these teams may be off the board now — though this is more of an educated guess than anything.

That team is the Mets, who made a trade for Luis Robert Jr. just hours after Heyman reported them as a candidate for Bellinger's services. If the Yankees were out on him, one would have to assume they would have done something similar. They have in the past.

Before Robinson Cano signed with the Seattle Mariners, they inked Jacoby Ellsbury to that ill-fated pact. More recently, prior to the 2019 season, the Yankees met with Manny Machado. When it was evident that their offer wasn't rich enough for the third baseman's blood, they plucked DJ LeMahieu off the board, and he had an MVP-caliber year in the Bronx.

Mar 24, 2018; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury (22) works out prior to the game at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The pivot for the Yankees this time around could have been Robert. It could also have been Harrison Bader.

Who the Yankees would have gotten may not even be worth debating anymore. The fact is, the stalemate for Bellinger may be coming to an end.

Assuming the Mets are Gone

With Robert, the Mets will be assuming $40 million over the next two years, which presumably would have been half of their AAV bid to Bellinger. Reports from the Athletic say the Mets were only looking to sign him short-term, which would have been a deal akin to what they gave Bo Bichette.

If the Mets offered fewer years, they may have had to usurp the Yankees' reported $160 million, five-year offer. This would have put them in the $40 to $50 million a year range for the lefty slugger, and considering that Spotrac has them at a $379 million payroll for 2026, it's hard to envision them going over the $400 million mark for Bellinger.

If you're the Yankees front office, this is what you have to be thinking. They may have all breathed a collective sigh of relief getting that trade news.

Unless the Los Angeles Dodgers go wild and decide they want to bring the former face of their franchise home, and further infuriate the baseball world, or Scott Boras finds his "dumb owner," as Bill Madden aptly put it, at some point, the Jeff Passan notification about Bellinger making his return to the Yankees will hit everybody's phone at once.

Oct 27, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Cody Bellinger (35) celebrates with starting pitcher Julio Urias (7) after the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Tampa Bay Rays to win the World Series in game six of the 2020 World Series at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

A Return to the Yankees?

It will be interesting to see what the final number will be now that the Mets are gone. It's hard to visualize anybody going into the deep waters the Mets would have swam in, so the smart money is that the Yankees are in the driver's seat of this Bellinger standoff with Scott Boras. Are those final numbers similar to the ones that have been floating around for weeks, or do the Yankees add a year?

If they do add a year, it would be the Yankees essentially bidding against themselves. Unless Boras pulls a rabbit out of his hat and convinces a team like the San Francisco Giants — who are now run by a wild card the likes of Buster Posey — to make a run at Bellinger and give him the years he sought all along, then he would be packing his bags and heading out west.

It doesn't feel like that will happen, though. Teams have had all winter to give Bellinger the necessary years, and nobody has balked. That dumb owner may not exist after all, and the Yankee offer that Boras has scoffed at all winter could be the best deal on the table.

This is all a guess, however. Things can change in an instant.

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