As Cody Bellinger\u2019s free agency lingered, the outfielder began to wonder if he would return to the Yankees, the outcome that just about everyone predicted when the offseason began.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were days that I was unsure,\u201d Bellinger said over Zoom on Thursday\u2026 as he made his first public comments since signing a five-year, $162.5 million deal with the Bombers<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the end, the likeliest scenario came to fruition. It just took a little more time than expected, as well as a few sweeteners in a contract that fell short of the seven-year term that Bellinger and his agent, Scott Boras, pushed for<\/a>.<\/p>\n Among the perks: Bellinger has the ability to opt-out after the second and third years of his deal. Already a good get, there\u2019s also a twist to those opt outs, as Bellinger can push them back to 2028 and 2029 if a potential work stoppage wipes out the 2027 season.<\/p>\n A source familiar with the matter told the Daily News that such language \u201cis not standard\u201d in other contracts that have been signed this offseason, nor has such language been standard in past offseasons that preceded anticipated work stoppages.<\/p>\n While the source wouldn\u2019t specify if any other player has signed a contract with such language this offseason, it appears Bellinger has a unique clause in his deal with a showdown looming over baseball\u2019s economics<\/a>. At the center of the sport\u2019s latest labor fight is the matter of a salary cap, something owners have always craved and players have staunchly stood against.<\/p>\n With the current Collective Bargaining Agreement set to expire at 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 1, commissioner Rob Manfred and owners are set to fight for a cap again (Yankees boss Hal Steinbrenner supports a cap, so long as there is a salary floor<\/a>). Players and the Major League Baseball Players Association have already made their opposition known, just as they always have. Hence, the industry is bracing for a work stoppage that could possibly last longer than the one that saw owners lock players out for just over three months from late 2021 to early 2022.<\/p>\n While that dark cloud hangs over the game, the 30-year-old Bellinger will enter the 2026 season as baseball\u2019s fifth-highest paid outfielder in terms of his $32.5 million average annual value. He trails Kyle Tucker ($60 million), Juan Soto ($51 million), Aaron Judge ($40 million) and Mike Trout ($35.5 million).<\/p>\n Bellinger\u2019s new deal also came with a $20 million signing bonus, another nice add-on with fears of a work stoppage swirling. With $32.5 million salaries in the first two years of the contract, Bellinger, who also received a full no-trade clause, will make $85 million before he has the chance to opt out.<\/p>\n With no deferrals in the pact, Bellinger will make $25.8 million in 2028 and 2029 and $25.9 million in 2030.<\/p>\n Because Bellinger\u2019s new contract is so frontloaded, among some other factors triggered by the current CBA, he is going to cost the Yankees $48.55 million for competitive balance tax purposes in 2026, the aforementioned source confirmed. With that so-called \u201cvalley charge\u201d in mind, FanGraphs<\/a> and Cot\u2019s Contracts<\/a> now project the Yankees\u2019 2026 CBT payroll to be over $330 million, a franchise record.<\/p>\n Cot\u2019s has the club at $335.5 million.<\/p>\n