LAS VEGAS — At MLB’s general managers meetings, Cody Bellinger was described by his agent, Scott Boras, as the “only five-tool free-agent outfielder” on the market. Boras, who’s known for his showmanship when describing his clients, rolled out seven “Top Gun” puns to describe Bellinger’s free-agency outlook, calling him a “versatile Viper” defensively, a “middle-lineup Merlin,” a “Maverick” for thriving in baseball’s biggest media markets, “Hollywood” for his star power, a “Windy City Wolfman” for his time with the Chicago Cubs, and an “Iceman” for cooling any doubts about his ability to hit behind Aaron Judge.

Boras’ final selling point for Bellinger was his lack of a qualifying offer this offseason: “That Goose is gone.”

The agent claimed that, when major free agents don’t have a qualifying offer attached, interest in that player doubles. The New York Yankees could not extend a qualifying offer to Bellinger this offseason because he had previously received one from the Cubs. Kyle Tucker, the consensus No. 1 free agent, has a qualifying offer. If the Yankees were to sign Tucker, they must surrender their second- and fifth-highest draft picks, as well as $1 million in international free agency money in penalties.

“When it comes to Bellinger, there’s no question that teams have a need to Belli proceed,” Boras said Wednesday morning.

“When it comes to Bellinger, there’s no question that the teams have a need. The need to Belli proceed.”

Scott Boras talks about Cody Bellinger’s free agency: pic.twitter.com/j4fuMH4xhT

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) November 12, 2025

The Yankees have not been secretive about their desire to re-sign Bellinger this offseason. General manager Brian Cashman stopped short of calling Bellinger’s return the Yankees’ No. 1 priority, but throughout the industry it is widely expected that is the club’s main objective.

“We’d be better served if we could retain him,” Cashman said Wednesday. “If not, then we’ll have to look at alternative ways to fill it and see where that takes us. But it’s pretty early in the process. I said it before, and I’ll say it again: We’d like to have him back.”

Bellinger posted a 125 wRC+ for the Yankees this season, along with 29 home runs and an .814 OPS. Defensively, he finished inside the top 20 in outs above average among all outfielders. Cashman called this offseason’s outfield market “very thin,” which should boost Bellinger’s price, as one of the best free agents available.

Before Bellinger makes his free-agency decision, the Yankees are waiting to see what center fielder Trent Grisham decides on his qualifying offer, which they extended last week. Grisham has until Tuesday to accept or decline the one-year, $22.025 million contract. It’s expected he will decline it to seek a multi-year contract with more guaranteed money.

To echo Boras’ comments above about how a qualifying offer can affect a player, that “goose” may depress his market, especially for Grisham, who doesn’t have a lengthy track record of success. But he should still do better than the qualifying offer because of how weak the center-field position is across MLB. Grisham’s 129 wRC+ was the second-best among all center fielders; only Minnesota Twins star Byron Buxton was better offensively.

Where the Yankees’ offseason — and their outfield picture in particular — gets interesting is if Grisham does accept the qualifying offer. Cashman said, “We’d be happy if he accepted and came back.”

If both Bellinger and Grisham return to the Yankees, that might create ripple effects for Jasson Domínguez and Spencer Jones.

“If both of those guys come back, then maybe it creates trade flexibility,” Cashman said. “I just don’t know how this stuff is going to play out. I guess stay tuned.”

Cashman said Domínguez would have played nearly every day on most other teams, but he didn’t have that luxury with the Yankees because of the seasons Bellinger and Grisham had. Domínguez finished his rookie season with 123 games played and a 103 wRC+. Domínguez will play winter ball in the Dominican Republic this offseason for Escogido Baseball Club, where the objective is to improve his defense in left field and to get more at-bats from the right side of the plate.

Jones finished his season in Triple A and hit 35 home runs this year in the minors. Cashman believes Jones would have made his MLB debut this season if he had been playing elsewhere, but there was no room for him on the Yankees. Jones has been working out at Yankee Stadium this offseason and is expected back in spring training, where he might be competing for an MLB job, depending on the Yankees’ roster construction this winter.

Hanging over all of this is the unknown of what the Yankees’ payroll might be in 2026. Owner Hal Steinbrenner has repeatedly said that having a $300 million payroll is unsustainable. The Yankees have eclipsed that number for two straight seasons. Cashman said he has not been given an absolute from Steinbrenner yet on the offseason budget. But if Grisham accepts the qualifying offer, it could complicate the rest of the Yankees’ plans, which include rebuilding the bullpen and possibly adding another starting pitcher.

No matter what direction the Yankees take this offseason, they should be one of the most active teams on the market.

“I think the Yankees are looking to improve, not subtract,” Boras said.