Cody Bellinger Has Come as Advertised for the Yankees

When the New York Yankees lost Juan Soto in free agency in 2024, many thought it was a sign that the team had lost its superstar pull. Soto went to the crosstown Mets for only $5 million more than the Yankees offered him.

In response, the team used the $760 million that it did not spend on Soto to acquire two former MVPs in Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger, among other additions. And while he has had periods of struggle since coming to the Bronx, Bellinger has stepped up exponentially at the plate this year, becoming one of the most important pieces on one of the league’s hottest teams.

A Second Chance Under the Bright Lights

During his six-year tenure in Los Angeles, Bellinger was one of the most-watched players in the sport. He burst onto the scene in 2017 with a National League Rookie of the Year campaign. He had an on-base percentage of .352 and a slugging percentage of .581, hitting 39 home runs and driving in 97.

He then played in all 162 games in 2018, and although he had 14 fewer homers and 21 fewer RBI than the year prior, he had 17 more hits and increased his bWAR from 4.0 to 4.5. He performed well in the postseason, hitting a walk-off single in Game 4 and a big homer in Game 7 of the NLCS to propel L.A. to its second straight NL pennant, earning the NLCS MVP.

But Bellinger’s masterpiece of his time in Chavez Ravine would be his 2019 NL MVP season. He led the NL with an 8.7 bWAR, surpassing his mark from the previous two seasons combined. His OPS was 1.035, and he had a slugging percentage of .629. He hit 47 homers and drove in 115, beating out Christian Yelich in their famous race for the award.

After that tremendous season, Bellinger struggled to replicate even a portion of that success. From the shortened 2020 season to 2022, his last three years in Los Angeles, he batted only .203, hitting 41 homers over that period. In 2022, he struck out 150 times in 504 at-bats.

He still showed flashes of his award-winning play and showed up in the postseason, helping the Dodgers win the 2020 World Series. Yet, after the 2022 season, L.A. non-tendered him, and he signed a deal with the Cubs.

In Chicago, Bellinger reinvented himself. He was named the NL Comeback Player of the Year in 2023, batted over .300 for the first time in three seasons and had his highest OPS since his MVP campaign. After another season in the Friendly Confines, Bellinger was traded to the Yankees soon after they failed to re-sign Soto.

Bellinger’s Impact in New York

Although there were times when Bellinger struggled at the plate, he still had a pretty solid season last year and played an important role in the outfield. His numbers were nearly identical to those from his 2023 season with the Cubs. He played all three outfield positions and spent a short time at first base as well.

Stats-wise, he had the second-highest bWAR and fWAR of his career, with his highest numbers in those categories coming, of course, from his MVP season. He also had a career-low strikeout percentage and ranked second among corner fielders in fielding run value.

What also stood out was his performance against lefties, even as a left-handed batter himself, which did well to win over the crowd in Yankee Stadium, with its famous short right field porch. He hit .353 with an on-base percentage of .415 and slugged .601 against southpaws. His 1.016 OPS marked the first time a qualified lefty batter had an OPS over 1.000 while striking out under 10% against left-handed pitching since Barry Bonds in 2004.

Though Bellinger courted other suitors in free agency over the winter, he ultimately signed back with the Yankees for five years and $162.5 million. And he has played an even bigger role in the lineup this year as the team continues to roll.

A Key Piece of One of the League’s Best Lineups

Bellinger continues to be very flexible in the outfield. Though he has spent the majority of his time in left field, he has played in center and in right when needed. A theme throughout the ups and downs of his career: He has always been able to flash the leather and play solid defense.

He has only committed two errors this season, and his 11 Rtot (total zone fielding runs above average) ranks fourth in MLB. Some of his plays have lit up the highlight reel, including a behind-the-back bobbling catch he made back in early April against the Marlins.

Bellinger also continues to rake and has been one of the most consistent hitters in the league through the first third of the season. He has driven in 40 runs this year and has worked 38 walks, both of which rank top 10 in the American League. He is in the top 15 in the AL in on-base percentage and OPS and the top 20 in slugging and batting average.

His batting run value, according to Baseball Savant, is in the 91st percentile, and many of his most important rate stats fall within the 80th percentile or higher. For example, Bellinger hits the launch angle sweet spot on 41.1% of his batted balls and squares up the ball 35% of the time. He strikes out less than 13% of the time, while his walk percentage is nearly 15%.

And while his April play was solid, he really took off in May, leading him to be named our AL Hitter of the Month. He drove in 23 runs while hitting 16 extra-base hits. His slash line stats all jumped up from April to May, as well as his total bases.

One notable negative of his performance is that most of his stellar play has happened at home. He is hitting only .198 on the road, and while he has struck out only eight times in the Bronx, he has gone down on strikes 25 times away from Yankee Stadium.

While he has only hit eight home runs total this season, six of those have come at home, as Bellinger hit his first two road homers of the season last week in Kansas City. Also, the majority of his extra-base hits at Yankee Stadium have been pulled to right field, which caters to his upper-cutting swing. He could be of even more use to the team if he could even the home/away splits as the stretch run approaches.

During the Yankees’ recent road trip to Kansas City and Sacramento, he had 12 total bases, drove in six runs and scored five runs himself. He went 2-for-5 with three RBI in a 15-1 win over the Royals on May 26, hitting a homer and knocking in two runs on a single. He also picked up two hits in the team’s 13-run third inning in their 13-8 win over the Athletics on Sunday, one of which was an RBI single.

As the season moves along, if he is able to stay healthy, Bellinger will be crucial to the Yankees’ stretch run. With his ability to perform at the plate and his versatility in the field, the team should expect Bellinger to keep producing all the way to October.