The annual general managers’ meetings, held this year in Las Vegas, came and went with hardly any news. That’s not unusual, as moves of significance rarely occur during the meetings. However, they often serve as the breeding ground for big moves to come and, generally speaking, teams’ offseason priorities begin to come into focus.
Here are three Yankees takeaways from this year’s GM meetings:
Re-signing Cody Bellinger is priority No. 1
The Yankees will face a lot of competition for Bellinger. “We’d love to have him back with us,” GM Brian Cashman said this week. “We would be better served if we could retain him.” But a handful of teams that, like the Yankees, are capable of spending big also are in the market for outfield help and almost certainly will pursue Bellinger, whose lefty swing proved the perfect fit for Yankee Stadium most had long thought it would be.
The Mets, Dodgers and Phillies are among the teams looking for outfielders, making Bellinger’s return to the Bronx far from a sure thing, as much as the 30-year-old enjoyed the 2025 season. “It really was an ideal fit,” Bellinger’s agent, Scott Boras, said of his client in pinstripes. Dollars and years will determine which uniform Bellinger fits into next year, and if the Yankees are outbid, certainly a possibility, their outfield situation suddenly will become far less clear.
Ben Rice, as of now, will be the first baseman in 2026
Cashman said as much on Wednesday. Rice forced his way into the everyday-player category this past season because of the consistency with which he wielded his potent lefty bat (26 homers), and Cashman said: “I view [him] as having an everyday role in the big leagues for us next year . . . right now the lane is first base.” Rice, drafted as a catcher — a position at which rival scouts still rate him as below average defensively, though noting improvements he made there as 2025 wore on — saw most of his time last year as the DH or at first base. Rice was mentored there by Paul Goldschmidt, a four-time Gold Glover, and putting in the work helped him get better and better. Rice’s breakout season also made him a desired trade target for other clubs, quite a few of which asked Cashman about him before the trade deadline. Cashman assuredly will be asked plenty about Rice’s availability this offseason.
It isn’t yet clear how much money will be at Cashman’s disposal
Cashman said he had not yet received his payroll marching orders from managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner. The owner has been on record for the last couple of years saying an annual $300 million-plus payroll is “not sustainable” (payroll has exceeded $300 million each of the last two seasons). The Yankees currently have an estimated 2026 payroll of $240 million to $260 million (that estimate is based on various factors, such as what arbitration-eligible players will receive). With plenty of areas to address (Bellinger will not come cheap and Cashman said he plans to explore the starting pitching and reliever markets as well), it is difficult to envision the Yankees adequately filling all of those needs and getting their payroll under $300 million.
Erik Boland started in Newsday’s sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
