Latest buzz hints Yankees are caving to Cody Bellinger (but not how anyone expected)

After word of the Yankees' five-year, $30M+ per season Cody Bellinger offer leaked ahead of the weekend, it certainly seemed like the team was getting frustrated, and the proposed deal was intended to be their best-and-final. That appeared doubly true after Buster Olney reported Saturday night that the team planned to operate as if Bellinger was going to sign elsewhere.

However, the new week has begun with a flurry of activity in the opposite direction. After Alex Bregman's Cubs contract provided both a distraction and a reason to believe Bellinger could get seven years, it appears the Yankees have not cut off contact with Scott Boras regarding his most familiar untethered client.

Rather, the two sides seem to be working towards a resolution. That doesn't mean the Yankees have opted for a splurge, though; they're sticking at five years, as far as we can tell.

It does mean that they've started tacking on sweeteners and communicating their clear willingness to add opt-outs to any Bellinger contract offer. According to Jon Heyman, they're not interested in deferrals, but that's floated as a positive, so ... take with that what you will.

Yankees, Cody Bellinger trying to work through Scott Boras impasse with contract sweeteners

All this chatter makes you wonder why opt-outs weren't heavily present in the Yankees' first offer. If they're something Bellinger's interested in, that makes the whole commitment much easier to swallow. The Red Sox tried to withhold a no-trade clause from Bregman, which instantly became part of the lore of his departure; after all, he was desperately seeking stability. If Bellinger is intrigued by the idea of remaining somewhat nomadic and trying his luck again in a post-lockout sphere, then why not tack a sixth year onto the contract and finish the job? Odds are you won't be seeing him in pinstripes in Year 6, anyhow. If Bellinger's a player you believe in signing to a five-year contract, that means you must believe he'll still be effective enough to test the waters again in Year 2 ... right?

The Yankees' goal should be to bring Bellinger back for 2026 and beyond on their terms. If the easiest way to get that done is by giving Bellinger and Boras a mid-contract out clause that would allow him to try this whole thing over again at 32 (Bregman's age on March 30), then so be it. A short-term Bellinger offer is likely the Yankees' best-case scenario. It's also probably all he'll get from any of the other competitors for his services, like the Mets and Dodgers.

Front load it. End it early. Whatever you have to do to make it most appealing. But be careful. Once opt-outs start being introduced, the Yankees' offer won't look that much different from those floated by potential competitors.