The New York Yankees have been linked to Cody Bellinger ever since the 2023 MLB trade deadline. The Chicago Cubs ultimately didn't trade Bellinger, but now the Yankees are expected to pursue him in MLB free agency. However, not everyone in the Yankees organization is sold on the former NL MVP, per MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

“The Yankees like free agent Cody Bellinger but some Yankee people are worried about his hard-hit rate even after his brilliant season,” Heyman wrote.

In other words, the Yankees have some concerns because Bellinger did not hit the ball especially hard in 2023. Is there validity to this concern though?

Yankees' Cody Bellinger concern

Cody Bellinger in a Yankees uniform

Bellinger enjoyed a strong 2023 season without question after back-to-back disappointing campaigns with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The surface numbers tell part of the story, as he slashed .307/.356/.525 with an .881 OPS and 26 home runs.

If the Yankees' concerns were strictly about Bellinger's underperformance in 2022 and 2021, that would be one thing. However, their worries actually may be valid based on Baseball Reference's underlying statistics.

Cody Bellinger's 2023 31.4 percent hard-hit rate was the lowest mark of his career. His strikeout rate was significantly lower than 2021 and 2022 though, which was a product of Bellinger opting to put the ball in play on a more consistent basis. He was not swinging for the fences as often.

The MLB's new shift restriction likely helped Bellinger. Putting the ball in play and not over the fence was far more beneficial in 2023 as compared to previous years because of the shift rule. His BABip (batting average on balls in play) was .319, the highest mark of his career.

So one could make the argument that Bellinger got lucky in 2023. Unless MLB changes its mind on the shift restriction, Bellinger's approach may continue to pay dividends moving forward.

And it wasn't as if the power numbers completely disappeared. He still posted his highest home run percentage since 2020.

The Yankees' concerns are understandable. However, those worries should not completely deter their potential Bellinger free agency pursuit.