Scott Boras may not be bluffing Yankees after update on Cody Bellinger's market

Scott Boras is on a heater after getting Alex Bregman paid, and his next assignment is to do the same for Cody Bellinger. Boras and the New York Yankees are said to be in a stare-down over a reported five-year, $155-$160 million deal on the table for Belli, but the Yanks need to be careful if they assume that no one will outbid them.

After all, there are rumors out there that the Boston Red Sox just called Boras’ bluff and got burned badly, with Foul Territory’s AJ Pierzynski suggesting that the Red Sox didn’t believe that Bregman had richer offers than their own, despite Boras saying so. 

And while the Yankees reportedly aren’t budging from their aforementioned Bellinger offer, they’re not being as rigid as the Red Sox, who wouldn't give Bregman a no-trade clause. New York might be willing to sweeten Belli’s contract with opt-outs. Brian Cashman knows who he’s dealing with in Boras, and a new report suggests that Bellinger might still have real and dangerous suitors beyond the Yankees.

Cody Bellinger’s alleged suitors are capable of outbidding the Yankees

The New York Post’s Jon Heyman reported on Monday that the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, and Toronto Blue Jays could still “make sense” for Bellinger. The Mets’ $50 million AAV offer to Kyle Tucker (revealed following Heyman’s report) removes them somewhat from this list, but that’s only assuming Tucker lands in Queens.

We also know that the Dodgers likely aren’t willing to go to five years for Bellinger, which would seemingly keep them behind the Yankees in the sweepstakes. But you never know what kind of financial fireworks LA is capable of, and the same can be said for the Blue Jays these days. If talks sour between Bellinger and the Yankees (or if they already have), there’s no denying that both Toronto and Los Angeles have the means to swoop in and throw a short-term, high-AAV offer at Belli that’ll be tough to refuse.

We also don’t know for certain if the Yankees won’t simply be outbid overall (in both years and dollar figure) by another mysterious suitor. The San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Angels are two teams that were casually tossed out there by FanSided’s Adam Weinrib on Monday, and both clubs might as well be legitimately added to Heyman’s list. After all, who the heck saw the Cubs signing Bregman away from the Red Sox before it happened? 

Some of Boras’s most masterful strokes happen in the shadows, with patience and leverage being his weapons of choice. The Yankees have seemingly made their final offer to Bellinger, but they just saw what happens when you wait around for Boras to cooperate. If they truly want Bellinger, the Yankees have to keep an open mind and continue to show that they are willing to play ball with extra incentives, even if the years and dollar figure aren’t moving. That’s where the opt-outs might come into play. Then again, it might not matter if we’re about to witness Bregman 2.0.