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Cody Bellinger’s Contract Brings Additional Complications For The Yankees
Cody Bellinger (Image Credits: Imagn)

Cody Bellinger’s Contract Brings Additional Complications For The Yankees

Originally posted on Total Pro Sports
By Paranjoy Goswami  |  Last updated Jan 29, 2026 10:56 AM ET

Cody Bellinger became an indispensable component for the New York Yankees after joining from the Chicago Cubs in the previous offseason. The 30-year-old outfielder opted out of his contract at the end of the 2025 campaign to head into free agency. After long and arduous negotiations, the Yankees signed Bellinger to a five-year, $162.5 million contract last week.

Joel Sherman of The New York Post reported that the signing of Cody Bellinger will incur the New York Yankees a huge cost in the luxury tax payroll in the first two years of the deal. Though the contract has a $32.5 million average annual value, Sherman points out that the actual value will be much higher than that. The two-time All-Star will cost the team more than Aaron Judge.

“There are intricate rules in the collective bargaining agreement that have a near poison pill type impact for the Yankees when it comes to Bellinger,” Sherman wrote on Tuesday. “Thus, Cody Bellinger will count as $48.55 million in total for the 2026 season for luxury tax purposes.”

“Cody Bellinger will cost the Yankees more toward the luxury tax payroll in 2026 than Aaron Judge—a lot more,” he added. “Judge—the highest-paid Yankee ever in total dollars and annual value—costs $40 million each year for luxury tax purposes.”

According to Sherman, the nature of this deal lies in a rare category of the collective bargaining agreement informally known as “Valley charge.” It applies when the contract is front-loaded before any opt-outs or player options, which is the case here. Cody Bellinger will earn $85 million over the first two years of the deal and $77.5 million in the remaining three years.

MLB Insider Reveals Cody Bellinger-Yankees Contract Details


Cody Bellinger (Image Credits: Imagn)

MLB insider Jon Heyman stated that the New York Yankees will pay two $10 million installments on April 1st and August 1st to the player for the $20 million signing bonus. Cody Bellinger will receive $32.5 million in each of his first two seasons before his first opt-out. He will get $25.8 million in the next season and $25.9 million in the final year of his deal. The left-handed slugger also gets a full no-trade clause for the entire duration of the contract.

“Signing Bonus—$20M (payable $10M-4/1/26; $10M-8/1/26),” Heyman posted in a tweet. “Player may opt out following the second or third Championship played. Full No Trade.”

As per a projection from RosterResource, the Yankees will have a payroll close to $330 million at the start of the 2026 season. They finished the previous campaign at $320 million, so there will not be much wiggle room during the season.

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

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