Alex Bregman deal just threw a major wrench in Yankees’ Cody Bellinger PR war

When the Yankees leaked their $30M+ annual offer to Cody Bellinger ahead of the weekend, it appeared to mean one of two things: a deal was getting close, or the Yankees wanted to clearly communicate that they'd tried before things fell apart.

It was hard not to view an offer in that range as the best Bellinger was going to receive, provided it wasn't for one or two years. After all, it would've made him either the fourth or fifth highest-paid outfielder in baseball, depending on whether it eclipsed Mookie Betts' $30.4 million AAV. It already felt like the Yankees had capitulated to Scott Boras. Bellinger isn't the fifth best outfielder in the game. They stated all winter that he was their top priority, and this offer made it clear they weren't bluffing.

But on Saturday night, negotiations took a twist, cementing that the Yankees' media strategy wasn't launched surrounding a done deal, but rather an impasse. Turns out the Yankees are as frustrated with Scott Boras as anyone would be under these circumstances, and don't expect their offer to get the job done.

At least, that's what they communicated via Buster Olney, who wrote on Saturday night in an ESPN column that the Yankees are planning to pivot and expect Bellinger to sign elsewhere.

Do they expect him to earn a larger contract than their current offer? Are they pulling their current offer? Or is this just the ultimate "put up or shut up" public negotiating tactic, nearly identical to what the Mets put out about Pete Alonso through Andy Martino last January (about three weeks before they re-signed him)? The one thing we know for now is that they're tired of waiting, and the ball is now in Boras' court.

And speaking of balls in peoples' courts ... before Saturday's end, Boras might've gotten vindicated with a glimmer of hope that there might be a larger deal out there for his complicated client.

Alex Bregman gave Scott Boras a win that could lead to Cody Bellinger's Yankees departure ... maybe

While the sporting world was distracted by Caleb Williams and the Bears' incredible comeback, Boras was putting the finishing touches on an Alex Bregman-Chicago Cubs bombshell. Five years, $175 million, deferrals included, and just like that ... Boras' other high-profile AL East client, who nobody really expected to leave his friendly confines, was headed out of Boston.

The "present-day value" of the Bregman contract will be less than $35 million per season, but the optics stay the same. Bregman is 32 years old, and was presumed not to have much of a serious market beyond the Red Sox and Diamondbacks, on the oft chance Arizona was able to deal Ketel Marte's contract (potentially to Boston). The Cubs, clearly, were secretly serious.

Bellinger? He's 30 years old, and he's a lot more versatile than Bregman at this stage in his career. He could eventually move seamlessly to first. He can cover the outfield. Theoretically, he should be challenging Bregman's AAV.

But ... but ... it's still really hard to figure out how Boras will create the competition necessary to raise Bellinger's salary to Bregman's sea level. The Mets and Dodgers don't seem to be willing to cross the short-term, high-AAV threshold. The Cubs have got to be out now, after the Bregman deal. The Blue Jays haven't been connected to Bellinger in ages (though, if they lose out on Kyle Tucker, you could see it).

The Yankees are claiming to be finished with Boras' games. But, until Bellinger puts pen to paper elsewhere - or until the Yankees' "interest" in Tucker and Bo Bichette actually manifests in something concrete - it's still hard to believe this isn't an attempt to put some public pressure on the man who holds all the cards this offseason. Again.