With Bellinger back, are the Yankees done making moves?

NEW YORK -- The dance between Cody Bellinger’s representatives and the Yankees was deep into a second month, the club having offered five years and the player’s side holding out for more, as Aaron Boone held out hope for a speedy resolution.

As he put it, “Who wouldn’t want a player like that?”

Bellinger was the Bombers’ top target, one they landed this week by agreeing to a five-year, $162.5 million pact. The manager was asked -- if the highlight of the winter turns out to be Bellinger’s return, would it be enough?

“You’re always trying to improve your club and improve your team,” Boone said then, “but [you] also pause and say, ‘Hey, we’re pretty good here.’ And we’ve got a lot of really good players, and a lot of really good, young core players that emerged on different levels last year.”

With Freddy Peralta traded to the Mets and MacKenzie Gore now with the Rangers, another pair of Yankees targets are off the board.

• How Bellinger, Peralta moves affect remaining free agents, trade market

Also seemingly out of reach is Tarik Skubal -- the Yanks checked in on the back-to-back AL Cy Young Award-winning left-hander, but they were told by the Tigers that they don’t have the necessary trade chips. The Yankees were connected to the Marlins’ Sandy Alcantara again this winter, but those talks stalled.

Though managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner said in November it would be “ideal” to reduce payroll after finishing last season at $319 million, the Yankees haven’t done so in any meaningful way.

Bellinger’s signing pushed the Yankees’ projected Competitive Balance Tax payroll well beyond the highest luxury tax threshold of $304 million -- FanGraphs calculates their CBT figure at $317.8 million, while Cot’s Contracts pegs it at $320.1 million.

Thus, a scenario Boone circled in December now appears in place: the Yankees are positioned to largely run it back with the same group from 2025, banking on continued development and Gerrit Cole’s healthy return in May or June to improve upon a 94-win season that ended with an early playoff exit.

There still could be additional dominoes to fall once Bellinger’s agreement is official. The 30-year-old’s return solidifies the outfield alongside Trent Grisham and Aaron Judge, a configuration that Jasson Domínguez struggled to crack last year, especially in the second half.

Domínguez was limited to just 110 at-bats after the All-Star break and appeared just once during the postseason: a ninth-inning plate appearance in the final American League Division Series game against the Blue Jays, when he roped a double to the wall in right-center field.

After participating in winter ball to gain defensive reps and more swings from the right side of the plate, Domínguez is still young -- he will turn 23 next month -- but the Yankees must determine if they see a path for consistent playing time.

General manager Brian Cashman recently acknowledged he considered optioning Domínguez to the Minors in the second half of last season, but said he “didn’t think that was right to do.”

“He provided the chance for us to run into something off the bench, especially with his speed to go along with [José] Caballero,” Cashman said. “But I still think there’s some upside there.”

Also potentially displaced by Bellinger’s return is Spencer Jones, who turns 25 in May and had been expected to challenge Domínguez for the starting left-field job this spring.

Coming off a productive showing at the Double-A and Triple-A levels, in which he belted 35 home runs and posted a .933 OPS (but also struck out 179 times in 438 at-bats), Jones could continue to log development time, but Cashman acknowledged he would’ve been promoted in other organizations already.

“He’s an exciting young talent that’s, again, unproven at the Major League level,” Cashman said of Jones, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Yanks' No. 4 prospect. “We’re going to find out at some point -- or somebody else would find out at some point, if they pry him away from me.”

It stands to reason that the Yankees could dangle either Domínguez or Jones if they aim to complete another trade before Opening Day, potentially to upgrade their bullpen, which is presently anchored by David Bednar, Camilo Doval, Fernando Cruz and Tim Hill.

The Yankees take comfort in the pending returns of Cole and Carlos Rodón, the latter of whom is due back in April or early May. That could potentially push Ryan Weathers or Will Warren into a relief role, with Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn already slated for similar assignments.

Still to be addressed is the roster’s overall balance, as Cashman acknowledged concern about the club being too left-handed.

The Yanks have been connected to free-agent outfielders Austin Hays and Harrison Bader in published reports. Cashman also said it would be ideal to add a right-handed-hitting catcher, though he said that was “probably less of a realistic option” because of a thin marketplace.