ORLANDO, Fla. -- Scott Boras was in full tongue-in-cheek form Tuesday when asked about the market for Cody Bellinger, unleashing a rapid-fire string of baseball puns that touched nearly every corner of the league with the image of an active market for the free-agent outfielder and first baseman.
"It's not for me to Judge, but great players see Red if they have a big bat Yanked out of their lineup,” Boras said at the Signia by Hilton Orlando. “I haven't Met a team that Dodges a five-tool player. To Phil the center-field need is a Giant step towards the playoffs.
“North and south, outfielders that fly with power, they're rare Birds. In the offseason, there's a lot of startup to organizations, and for that reason, there's a lot of Angel investors that are looking for very versatile outfielders. So other than that, Belli doesn't have much interest."
Credit to Boras (or his writers) for the well-rehearsed wordplay. Parsing that information, Boras suggested the market for Bellinger -- at minimum -- could include the Yankees, Reds, Mets, Dodgers, Phillies, Giants, Blue Jays and Angels.
That’s not surprising, considering Bellinger is rated alongside Kyle Tucker as one of the top free-agent outfielders available this winter.
The Yankees have spoken openly about their desire to re-sign the 30-year-old Bellinger, who opted out of his contract in November after a strong first season in the Bronx.
Playing in 152 games for New York this past season, Bellinger batted .272/.334/.480 with 89 runs, 25 doubles, five triples, 29 home runs, 98 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.
Upon arriving at the Winter Meetings on Sunday, general manager Brian Cashman said he believes Bellinger “would be a great fit for us.”
“I think he'd be a great fit for anybody,” Cashman said. “I think he's a very talented player that can play multiple positions at a high level, and hits lefties, hits righties. He's a contact guy, and I think our environment was a great one for him.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone also spoke positively about Bellinger on Monday.
“Who he was in the room, his performance between the lines on both sides of the ball, his athleticism, his versatility -- who wouldn't want a player like that?” Boone said “He's earned the right now to get to this point of his career, free agency as still a relatively young man. So we'll see what happens.”
Though Cashman said the Yankees’ lineup is “without a doubt” too left-handed, Bellinger’s ability to crush left-handed pitching stands out. He batted .353 (54-for-153) against southpaws this past season, the third-highest batting average in the Majors.
Given the wide market for Bellinger, a two-time All-Star (2017, ’19) and two-time Silver Slugger ('19, ’23) who was the National League’s 2019 Most Valuable Player with the Dodgers, Boras said he could not forecast how soon a deal might be reached.
“I can never predict markets, because when owners get involved, they can do things in a moment’s notice,” Boras said. “And with these types of players, you expect that. It’s happened before, and we expect it could happen again.”
Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner has said it would be “ideal” to reduce payroll, having finished 2025 with a $319 million figure. But Cashman said he has not received a hard cap from ownership.
Boras -- who has also fielded calls from the Yankees about right-hander Tatsuya Imai -- said he has not experienced any indications that the Bombers are operating with constraints.
“I don’t think when Cash or [team president] Randy [Levine] call me, they talk about limiting payroll,” Boras said. “They talk about acquiring players. They’ve never made any mention of that.
“And I go back to what they did with [Juan] Soto last year -- Hal and Randy and Cash did everything they could possibly do to pursue a great talent, so I have no reason [to think] that they wouldn’t approach this market any different.”