Cody Bellinger DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said on WFAN 660 on Tuesday that he will likely use outfielder Cody Bellinger in center field and outfield prospect Jasson Dominguez in left field in 2025. The Yankees can move Bellinger around as needed, including to play first base, while Boone would rather keep Dominguez in one spot in what will be his first full professional season in the majors. Paul Goldschmidt will be the Yankees' starting first baseman, but on days he's used as the designated hitter, Bellinger could slide to first. In addition to being the team's primary left fielder in 2025, Dominguez, along with infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr., will be an option to hit leadoff for the Bombers. Both Bellinger and Dominguez will be No. 3 outfield targets in fantasy, with Bellinger having a safer floor given his experience, but Dominguez certainly has the higher long-term ceiling.

New York Yankees' recent trade acquisition Cody Bellinger could play first base, left field, or center field for the Bombers, according to manager Aaron Boone, who said on Wednesday that a report that Bellinger was told he would play center field was "fake news." This means that top prospect Jasson Dominguez is still in play for the center-field job and leaves open the possibility of signing a first baseman, which could put Bellinger in left field. Nevertheless, it sounds like Aaron Judge will transition back to right field, regardless of what transpires. Bellinger himself has said he'll play wherever he's needed and to let the offseason play out. The lefty slugger is ranked right around 124 in early 2025 fantasy drafts, so we'll see how his new surroundings affect his ADP in the coming months.

According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, the Chicago Cubs are trading first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger to the New York Yankees in exchange for right-handed pitcher Cody Poteet and cash. Bellinger has spent the past two seasons playing with the Cubs. After hitting 26 home runs in 2023, Bellinger took a slight step back last summer, tallying just 18 round-trippers. In addition, he carried a .266/.325/.426 line, which was also a decline from the .307/.356/.525 line he held in 2023. Under the hood, Bellinger generated an underwhelming 32.9% hard-hit rate with a poor .301 xwOBA. However, with the short porch in right field. Fantasy managers should expect Bellinger to see his home run numbers be more in line with 2023 production. Bellinger will likely see most of his starts in center field, which would move Aaron Judge back to right field. Cody Poteet will likely operate as a high-leverage option in the Chicago bullpen as he posted a solid 2.22 ERA and 1.07 WHIP but could see an occasional start as he did make four last summer.

The New York Post's Jon Heyman reports that there is still a money gap in the trade talks for outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger with the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees. Heyman describes the situation as a matter of "who blinks first," if ever. A trade could still go down between the two clubs this winter, but the Yankees are also considering signing/trading for first baseman Pete Alonso, Christian Walker, Carlos Santana, Josh Naylor and Nathaniel Lowe, among others. The Cubs are even more willing to trade Bellinger and try to offload his contract after acquiring All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker from the Houston Astros last week. The 29-year-old Bellinger, a former MVP in 2019 with the Dodgers, came back to Earth in 2024 in Chicago after hitting over .300 with 26 homers in 2023. The left-handed hitter could be enticing in fantasy in the Bronx, but his poor contact numbers and high strikeout rate are cause for concern.

The New York Post's Jon Heyman writes that the New York Yankees are targeting Chicago Cubs outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger in a trade this offseason after failing to re-sign superstar outfielder Juan Soto. In addition to Bellinger, the Yankees could go after Houston Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker or free agents Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, Christian Walker and Anthony Santander. New York's emphasis for a position player is on third base, first base and outfield. Although the Yankees and Cubs remain far apart on money, they've made a bit of progress during the MLB winter meetings this week. Chicago is asking the Yankees to take on nearly the full $52.5 million Bellinger is due over the next couple years. Bellinger is a former MVP who would bring great defense at first base and would also be an insurance policy in center field in case prospect Jasson Dominguez doesn't work out.