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Cody Bellinger Bracing for Change After Paul Goldschmidt News

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Josh Valdez | Last updated Aug 15, 2025 6:41 PM ET

The New York Yankees need all the help they can get to stay in the playoff race, and that doesn't include a Paul Goldschmidt injury. However, the 37-year-old missed Wednesday's 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins with a knee ailment and won't start against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.

The Yankees subbed out Goldschmidt in the eighth inning for catcher J.C. Escarra in Tuesday's 9-1 win over the Twins, with Ben Rice moving from behind the plate to first base. The latter player also started at first in Wednesday's game, while the struggling Austin Wells was the catcher. Wells is slashing just .206/.264/.408 over 94 games this season.

On the other hand, Goldschmidt is slashing .276/.331/.422 with 10 homers and 40 RBI across 112 contests, ranking third on the team with 110 hits and 65 runs scored. That's why it can't afford to lose him for an extended period, as it defends a half-game lead over the Cleveland Guardians for the third and final AL Wild Card spot.

However, Goldschmidt announced a silver lining before Friday's game, via The New York Post's Greg Joyce.

"Paul Goldschmidt said he expects to be available off the bench," he reported.

Rice will catch for New York on Friday and hit second, while outfielder Cody Bellinger will bat cleanup and play first. The latter player has played just six games of his 112 games at first this season.

Yankees lineup vs. Cardinals

Paul Goldschmidt said he expects to be available off the bench pic.twitter.com/pg44pGFsLI
— Greg Joyce (@GJoyce9) August 15, 2025

The fact that Goldschmidt could come off the bench means that New York avoided a potentially devastating blow. The veteran is slashing just .207/.233/.483 in August, but he slashed .280/.308/.400 in July. If he can get back to his July form, it would help the team maintain its playoff positioning with six weeks left in the regular season.

Yankees right-handed pitcher Luis Gil will start against Cardinals right-hander Andre Pallante at Busch Stadium on Friday night.

Cody Bellinger Will Likely Move Back to Outfield Soon

With Goldschmidt avoiding the IL, Bellinger could move back to the outfield as soon as Friday night if New York subs in Goldschmidt during the game. Otherwise, the team could make the change on Saturday, if and when the latter player returns to the starting lineup.

Bellinger was primarily a first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2017 and 2018 before spending the majority of his time in the outfield after that. However, the veteran still played first part-time in each season since then, so he has plenty of experience at the position if the Yankees ever need him there again.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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