Yankees and Brett Gardner agree to 1-year, $ 4 million deal

The New York Yankees and the outfielder Brett Gardner reached an agreement on a one-year contract worth $ 4 million, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan, confirming various reports.

The deal is pending a physical exam. It includes a second-year player option that, if declined, becomes a team option, sources said.

Gardner, 37, became a free agent in November when New York turned down a $ 10 million option, prompting a $ 2.5 million purchase. He has been with the Yankees since 2008 and is their last player on the 2009 World Series winning team. His 14-year tenure with a team during his career is tied for fifth among active players.

Gardner hit .223 with five home runs and 15 RBIs in the short season, down from .251 with a career-high 28 home runs and 74 RBIs in 2019. The Yankees agreed to a deal with a $ 2 million signing bonus and salary. of $ 8 million for 2020, which became $ 2,962,963 in prorated payment.

“Obviously, he’s been a great Yankee, but we’ll see how things play out here,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Wednesday at spring training in Tampa, Florida.

Boone then said that Clint Frazier He was projected as their starting left fielder after making big strides last year in his fourth season with the Yankees. The 26-year-old Frazier hit .267 with eight home runs and 26 RBIs in 131 at-bats during the pandemic-shortened season, after hitting .267 with 12 home runs and 38 RBIs in 225 at-bats in 2019.

Drafted in the third round by the Yankees in 2005, Gardner is hitting .259, 129 home runs and 539 RBIs.

The Associated Press contributed to that report.

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