Cody Bellinger DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger went 1-for-4 with a walk and a two-run home run in Sunday's 7-5 loss to the Rays. It has been a disappointing season so far for the left-handed slugger who was supposed to be able to take advantage of Yankee Stadium's "short porch" in right field, now with four home runs on the season and pacing for no more than the 18 home runs he hit last season in Chicago. The 18 RBI and 15 runs scored that the former MVP has tallied to this point are fine, but would be higher if he could hit for better than a .200 average in the middle of the Yankee lineup. His current contact rate stands at 77.6, the lowest since 2022, but he's chasing less and walking more, while his barrel and hard-hit rates are above where they've been in a long time, which is at least a sign that maybe he can still turn things around.

New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger went 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in Sunday's 4-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. The 29-year-old registered his second home run and third steal of the season. There isn't much getting around it -- Bellinger hasn't been great during his first stint in pinstripes. He currently holds a higher average exit velocity and hard-hit rate than he has in years, but it hasn't translated to production on the field. The 29-year-old is 12-for-67 (.179) with four extra-base hits (one double, one triple) and a .550 OPS. Furthermore, he's striking out 25% of the time after compiling a 15.6% punchout rate over the prior two seasons. Bellinger's BABIP is unusually low (.204), so he may see some positive regression soon. Still, this isn't how he wanted to start his career as a Yankee.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that outfielder Cody Bellinger (back) is still getting treatment for his sore back, which is why he was out of the starting lineup for Monday's series opener against the visiting Kansas City Royals. "He's doing well. I just want to pick some spots here, especially getting through 13 (games) in a row here," Boone said. It doesn't sound like anything fantasy managers should be worried about, but they'll want to check back on Tuesday to see if he has returned to the starting lineup. It could also be a big reason for why the 29-year-old left-handed slugger is hitting just .191 (9-for-47) in the early going of his first year in pinstripes with a homer, eight RBI, nine runs scored and two stolen bases in 13 games played. Bellinger also missed some time early last week after dealing with food poisoning.