After spending his entire Major League career with the Boston Red Sox, free-agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury has reportedly signed a seven-year deal to join the rival New York Yankees.
Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News was the first to report the story.
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The Red Sox will get a draft pick from the Yankees as compensation for losing Ellsbury, per The Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham.
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Ellsbury is the first high-profile Red Sox player to join the other side of baseball’s most storied rivalry as a free agent since Johnny Damon went from Boston to New York after the 2005 season. Former Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis signed with the Yankees in December of 2012 after Boston traded him to the Chicago White Sox in July of that year.
The Yankees finished tied for third place in the AL East division in 2013 with an 85-77 record, and their lineup could certainly use a player with Ellsbury’s offensive talent after finishing 16th in runs scored, 24th in batting average, 23rd in on-base percentage and 27th in slugging percentage.
Ellsbury, 30, hit .298 with nine home runs, 53 RBIs and 52 stolen bases in 134 regular-season games for the Red Sox in 2013. He batted .344 with zero home runs, six RBIs and six steals in 16 postseason games as part of Boston’s World Series-winning roster.
It’s unclear how this contract with Ellsbury will impact the Yankees’ other offseason plans, including the status of free-agent second baseman Robinson Cano. New York has reportedly made offers to several of the top free agents on the market.
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