The New York Yankees have been aggressive in not just replacing a superstar this winter, but in comprehensively improving a roster that made it to the World Series in 2024.
After losing Juan Soto to a record-breaking contract from the New York Mets, the Yankees have added a range of star players to their rotation, bullpen and batting order. But after they swung a blockbuster trade to add former Most Valuable Player Award winner Cody Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs, some might wonder if they’re overpaying for a player who hasn’t quite lived up to his contract.
Bellinger slashed just .266/.325/.426 for the Cubs in 2024, the first season of a three-year, $80 million contract. If he doesn’t improve that production at Yankee Stadium in 2025, he might not be much of an improvement over Alex Verdugo, a left fielder who is now testing free agency after a disappointing 2024 season with the Yankees.
Writing for The Athletic, Chris Kirschner noted that the advanced statistics underscore comparisons between the two.
“Like Verdugo, Bellinger does not hit the ball hard, and his Statcast page is as icy blue as the outgoing left fielder,” Kirschner wrote. “A glance at Bellinger’s Statcast page would suggest the Yankees traded for Verdugo 2.0.”
Though Kirschner emphasized that Bellinger has a lot more upside than Verdugo, any comparison between the two could concern Yankees fans. Verdugo slashed just .233/.291/.356 in his sole season with the Yankees.
But Kirschner explained that, while Verdugo struggled to “pull the ball,” or hit it to the same side of the field from which he was batting, Bellinger can bring a more successful approach to the Yankees.
Kirschner noted that Bellinger “pulls the ball into the air,” which will hopefully generate stronger results than Verdugo saw this past season.
“As long as he can increase his pull percentage in 2025, he should find the success that Verdugo could not during his lone season with the Yankees,” Kirschner added. “And if Bellinger can reach the pull percentage he had in 2019, he might be able to help lessen the blow of losing Juan Soto.”
Bellinger earned his MVP Award with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2019, along with a Gold Glove Award, a Silver Slugger Award and an All-Star nod. That is certainly the form that the Yankees should hope for from the slugger in 2025, rather than one that recalls Verdugo.
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