When Juan Soto departed for Queens, the Yankees found themselves in an incredibly difficult situation ahead of the 2025 season.
The story should not be rewritten to downplay Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman’s determination to retain the future Hall of Famer; they made a $760 million offer to make Soto the richest player in MLB history for a reason.
As the news came out and the team found out about Soto’s decision, they didn’t have time to sulk or cope; they had to go about the rest of their offseason with a Plan B in mind.
Just nine days after that monumental moment in NY baseball history, the Yankees and Cubs would reach an agreement on a deal to send outfielder Cody Bellinger to the Bronx.
It’s a deal that’s worked out beautifully for the Yankees; their backup plan has produced as much value as the man they tried to desperately to keep, and it’s a reason for their offensive brilliance in 2025.
READ: Yankees Plan to Convert Rehabbing Starter to a Bullpen Weapon
Cody Bellinger Has Helped the Yankees Forget About Failed Juan Soto Pursuit
The Yankees knew they were losing serious home run power from the left-handed side, and while Cody Bellinger isn’t the hitter Juan Soto is, he’s helped the middle of this offense a ton.
Bellinger has whacked 26 home runs with 22 doubles and five triples, sporting a .511 SLG%, which is the 16th best mark in baseball.
He’s taken full advantage of the short porch in right field, increasing the frequency of contact in the air and how often he pulls those elevated balls to right field.
Looking at his spray chart overlaid on Yankee Stadium, Cody Bellinger’s swings are perfect for the dimensions of the ballpark, which help lefties who can consistently pull the baseball.
Doing most of his work hitting behind Aaron Judge, it puts pitchers in a pickle as they cannot just issue a free pass to the reigning AL MVP.
It’s also not a situation where managers can issue the free pass with a lefty on the mound, as Cody Bellinger is among the top five in OPS and SLG% against southpaws.
Cody Bellinger is still a free swinger who will chase often, but he’s doing it with the purpose of hammering a pitch rather than just making contact.
His bat is tantalizing, but the game-changer comes with just how good the 2019 NL MVP has been in the outfield.
OH MY GOODNESS CODY BELLINGER
WHAT A DEFENSIVE PLAY. HUGE DOUBLE PLAY FOR THE YANKEES. pic.twitter.com/xL1ZJdzMcd
— Fireside Yankees (@FiresideYankees) July 6, 2025
With +9 Defensive Runs Saved and +5 Outs Above Average, Cody Bellinger has been one of the better defensive outfielders in the game.
It allows him to leave a positive impact on the game even if his bat isn’t going right, and that’s reflected in his WAR value.
Cody Bellinger has a 4.3 fWAR entering play today, which is the 17th-best mark for any position player in baseball and ahead of Juan Soto (3.9), whom the team brought in to replace.
This isn’t to say that Bellinger is better than Soto, but this season, he has provided as much value, if not more, at a fraction of the cost.
Entering the season, ZiPS projected Juan Soto to produce 6.4 WAR and Cody Bellinger to produce 3.1 WAR, less than half the value of the Mets’ new right fielder.
Cody Bellinger has been a revelation for the Yankees; the team acquired him for Cody Poteet, who has produced zero value due to injuries.
Kyle Tucker cost three players who have roughly produced as much WAR as he has while having multiple years of control each beyond 2025.
Juan Soto required a record-setting contract valued up to $800 million, a deal that may not be eclipsed for the near future.
The Yankees didn’t get the guy they wanted, but they found a way to acquire a productive outfielder who they don’t have any money committed to beyond 2025.