Yankees urged to make trade for Astros' 2.4 WAR outfielder as Cody Bellinger backup plan

Conor Liguori

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Yankees urged to make trade for Astros' 2.4 WAR outfielder as Cody Bellinger backup plan image

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What is the New York Yankees' backup plan in left field if Cody Bellinger departs in free agency? 

Will Jasson Dominguez and or Spencer Jones split time at the position, or will the Yankees opt to make a trade? 

New York has reportedly made an offer to Bellinger, but the waiting game for his decision could stretch over the next few weeks. Behind Kyle Tucker, the former NL MVP is the top free agent outfielder available. 

If the Yankees decide that the duo of Dominguez and Jones will not be enough to remain contenders, FanSided's Stephen Parello proposed a trade idea involving the Houston Astros for a five-year veteran outfielder. 

Yankees could pivot to Astros' Jake Meyers 

Jake Meyers' name has popped up in trade rumors over the last few offseasons, but regardless, he stuck around with the Astros in 2025. 

"Meyers would give the Yankees a right-handed bat and a defensive whiz in the outfield, both of which they could use. If you believe in his 2025 breakout, when he slashed.292/.354/.373 with a solid 17.6% strikeout rate and a career-best 90.1% zone contact rate, then you start getting poor man's Cody Bellinger vibes," wrote Parello.

Houston has an abundance of outfielders, including youngsters Cam Smith and Zach Cole. They could afford to offload Meyers in a trade to acquire a pitching prospect from the Yankees. 

"Houston has an abysmal farm system and just dealt their top pitching prospect, Anderson Brito, alongside [Jacob] Melton in the [Mike] Burrows trade," Parello added. "Perhaps the Yankees could offer up one of their many highly-regarded pitching prospects to get a deal done." 

Meyers reaches free agency in the offseason of 2027-28, so the Yankees would have him for at least the next two seasons.  

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Senior Editor