NEW YORK — There is a backup plan forming in the Bronx. And it comes with a question nobody wants to answer.
The Yankees want Cody Bellinger back. That much is clear. But what happens if he signs elsewhere? Brian Cashman has started making calls.
One name keeps surfacing. A player who costs a fraction of the price. A player who could platoon in left field. A player who is not Bellinger.
The question is simple. The answer is complicated. How much production would the Yankees sacrifice if they pivot to Plan B?
The backup option emerges from Cincinnati
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported this week that the Yankees have checked in on outfielder Austin Hays. The 30-year-old spent 2025 with the Cincinnati Reds after bouncing from Baltimore to Philadelphia.
Hays hit .266 with 15 home runs and a .768 OPS in 103 games last season. He missed time with three separate injuries. Back spasms cost him the final week of the regular season.
The numbers are solid. They are not spectacular. And they sit far below what Bellinger delivered in the Bronx.
The production gap nobody wants to discuss
Bellinger hit .272 with 29 home runs and 98 RBI for the Yankees in 2025. He posted a .813 OPS and a 4.9 fWAR. That was his best season since winning NL MVP in 2019.
Hays posted a 105 wRC+ last season. Bellinger finished with a 125 wRC+. That is a 20-point gap in offensive production.
The home run difference is even starker. Bellinger nearly doubled Hays’ total. He drove in 33 more runs. He did it in fewer at-bats.
SI.com put it bluntly. “Certainly, Hays would be a downgrade from Bellinger.” The numbers support that assessment.
Why the Yankees led baseball in outfield production
The 2025 Yankees were not just good in the outfield. They were historically dominant.
MLB Trade Rumors noted that New York led the majors in runs scored, home runs, RBI, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, wRC+, and fWAR from the outfield positions.
Bellinger was the engine that made it work. He balanced a lineup that featured Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. His switch-hitting gave manager Aaron Boone flexibility against both lefties and righties.
Losing that production would hurt. The question is whether the Yankees can absorb it.
Comparative Snapshot: Bellinger vs. Hays
The platoon plan that might close the gap
Here is where it gets interesting. Hays destroys left-handed pitching.
Empire Sports Media reported that among hitters with at least 150 appearances against lefties over the last two seasons, Hays owns the 10th-highest OPS at .941. He posted a 155 wRC+ against southpaws in 2025.
Jasson Dominguez, the Yankees’ top prospect, hit .768 OPS against right-handed pitching last season. He struggles against lefties.
A platoon between Hays and Dominguez could produce similar offensive value to Bellinger. The combination would address the lineup’s weakness against left-handed arms while developing the team’s future star.
But there is a catch. And it is a significant one.
The defensive downgrade that concerns scouts
Bellinger ranked in the 92nd percentile in outs above average in 2025. He played Gold Glove-caliber center field. His range covered gaps that other outfielders simply could not reach.
Hays is a solid defender. He owns a career plus-20 DRS in the outfield. His arm strength sits in the 84th percentile.
But he lacks the explosive speed that Bellinger provides. Empire Sports Media warned that “the defensive drop-off would be a massive concern” if the Yankees pivot to a platoon plan.
Bellinger was more than just a bat. He brought elite run prevention. Replacing that might be impossible.
What Hays knows about Yankee Stadium
There is one factor working in Hays’ favor. He has crushed the ball in the Bronx.
In 94 career at-bats at Yankee Stadium, Hays owns a .298 batting average with a .564 slugging percentage. The short porch in right field suits his right-handed swing.
He spent four seasons with the Orioles terrorizing Yankees pitching in division games. He knows the park. He knows the competition.
Still, 94 at-bats is a small sample. Expecting those numbers to hold over a full season would be optimistic at best.
The price difference that makes this a real debate
Bellinger is expected to command close to $200 million on the open market. Scott Boras wants eight years. ESPN projects something closer to five years and $170 million.
Hays would cost a fraction of that. Cincinnati declined his $12 million mutual option after the season. He is likely looking at a short-term deal in the $6 to $8 million range.
The Yankees could sign Hays and still have more than $150 million left over to address pitching or other needs. That flexibility has value.
But it only matters if the drop-off in production does not cost them games in October.
The verdict on the Yankees’ Plan B
Matt Ehalt of the New York Post suggested that Hays could platoon with Dominguez “to form a formidable tandem” in left field. The combination has appeal.
But the math does not lie. Bellinger produced nearly two full wins above replacement more than Hays in 2025. He hit 14 more home runs. He drove in 33 more runs.
The Yankees’ outfield was the best in baseball last season. Losing Bellinger and adding Hays would change that equation dramatically.
Cashman is doing his due diligence. He has options if Bellinger walks. But make no mistake. The drop-off is real. And the Yankees know it.
What do you think? Leave your comment below.
It’s not so much of a direct drop-off. The problem really is if the Yankees are wrong about Grisham. Dominguez gets LF and the leadoff spot while Hays becomes the 4th OF. But what if Dominguez hits .290 overall and steals 50+ bases, with 20+ HRs, but Grisham once again struggles to hit even .200 and he hits some HRs, but no big HRs like he did in 2025? To me its not Bellinger vs. Dominguez/Hays vs, Bellinger, its more like what does Trent Grisham do in 2026.