A few years ago, Cody Bellinger‘s once-promising career – the NL Rookie of the Year in 2017 and MVP in 2019 – looked to be over after batting .193 with a .611 OPS in his final 239 games with the Los Angeles Dodgers. But after two solid years on Chicago’s Northside and a terrific year in The Bronx, he enters free agency as one of baseball’s hot commodities.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone says there’s a lot to love about the 30-year-old outfielder’s game.
“Who he was in the room, his performance between the lines on both sides of the ball, his athleticism, his versatility,” the manager said Monday at the MLB Winter Meetings. “Who wouldn’t want a player like that?”
During his (so far) lone season in pinstripes, Bellinger’s on-field contributions totaled 29 home runs, 98 RBI, with a .272/.334/.480 slash line for an .813 OPS (125 OPS+ and wRC+) while ranking in the 93rd percentile in outs above average (seven) and with 12 defensive runs saved.
But with free agency, the power and decision of where he plays next is up to him for the second time in his career, something Boone is content with waiting to see how it plays out.
“He’s earned the right now to get to this point of his career of free agency as still a relatively young man,” Boone said. “We’ll see what happens, we’ll see how it shakes out. As far as the player and the person, he’s a good one.”
Boone said he hasn’t been part of the recruitment process, adding he doesn’t typically do that with players who have been with the club previously.
“They know who we are, they know what we’re about,” the skipper said. “Certainly, if there comes a point where – and this isn’t just for Cody, this is with anyone – when it gets to a point where we’re starting to get down the road, or being in conversations, I’ll certainly have conversations with guys where I see it fit.”
Out in left field
Part of the conversation around bringing back Bellinger would be: What does that mean for Jasson Dominguez’s opportunity to play more in left field?
“We’re back into the hypothetical again,” Boone said with a smile when asked about Dominguez’s opportunities. “Right now, reality is JD is a young, talented player that got real experience at the big-league level last year. Had a lot of success, had some struggles along the way with it, but I think we all see a really talented player there.”
Of course, while the situation is hypothetical now, reality could come calling at some point in the not-too-distant future.
“If the situation presents itself down the road where you end up having a lot of good players for not enough spots,” Boone said, “you figure it out. You work it out. And then competition plays a big role, too. Those things kinda work themselves out.”
New York Yankees left fielder Jasson Domínguez (24) gestures after hitting a three run double in the sixth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
He added: “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there, if and when something like that comes up.”
Dominguez returned to the Dominican to “get more at-bats” playing winter ball, which Boone called something that will be “very valuable” to the 22-year-old.
“Just going down there and playing in that environment and getting some at-bats and continuing to play,” he said, noting that while Dominguez reached 429 plate appearances on the year, that down the stretch he “didn’t play much obviously.”
One area that the Yanks hope to see Dominguez improve is batting from the right side. The switch-hitter posted a .274 average and .768 OPS as a lefty and just a .204 average and .569 OPS as a righty. The manager pointed toward limited at-bats as a reason for that disparity – 325 plate appearances as a lefty to 104 as a righty.
“We’re talking about a very, very young player that didn’t play a ton of minor league baseball, and what suffers from that? The side you don’t hit from as much,” Boone said. “I still think it’s a natural side for him, he’s a natural right-handed hitter. I don’t think it’s out of the question that at some point that right hand catches up to the left side, but we’ll see.”
The bigger question regarding Dominguez’s chances is his defense in left field, which was a real liability: He was in the 2nd percintile for outs above average (minus-10).
“Overall, real improvement, but there’s still a long ways to go in that improvement,” Boone said of his defense. “The difference of him February compared to April compared to June, I think there was really big strides. But still a ways to go just in learning the nuances of the position.
“He’s athleticism is a real calling card for him as far as speed and arm strength, and you hope that continues to win the day and eventually gets him to that point where ‘man, now he’s really good out there.’ Still has a lot of development to do in that regard.”
First base for Ben Rice
Rice’s bat was the biggest boost for the Yankees last season as he slugged 26 home runs and posted an .836 OPS, but his versatility playing first base and catching helped solve several lineup headaches for the manager. Entering the 2026 season, the club is leaving the option to see him work behind the plate open, while pointing the 26-year-old toward first.
“Right now he’s our first baseman,” Boone said. “The catching stuff is still very much in play, and then we’ll see. We’ll see how the offseason unfolds with how we are roster-wise going into spring training, and how much catching that means, or if it is all first base. But definitely see him as our first baseman.”
Boone said that he didn’t think Rice got “shorted” from working on his defense at first base by working at both spots, and that they will continue to give him time at catcher: “It’s an important skill that he possesses that you don’t want it to go away, because he’s capable back there.”
In early November, general manager Brian Cashman told reporters that “more likely than not” he sees Rice at first “without a doubt.”
“I view Ben Rice as having an everyday role in the big leagues for us next year, whether it’s at first… right now the lane is first base, I have no doubt teams will continue to come after our players, Rice included, for trade conversations,” Cashman said at the time. “But as of right now, yeah, he’s in our lineup, and the more likely spot would be first base.”
Read the full article here
