Jacoby Ellsbury Nearing Deal With New York Yankees

Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Earlier this week, we heard that several teams were moving in on Jacoby Ellsbury and that a deal during the Winter Meetings next week in Orlando was possible, though the destination was still unclear. As we still stand a ways away from the Winter Meetings, it doesn’t look like we’ll have to wait that long before Ellsbury signs, as his destination appears to have been made clear.

The New York Yankees have apparently once again managed to reel in a former outfielder from the Boston Red Sox, as they are currently closing in on a deal with Ellsbury, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman:

The exact terms of the deal are not clear at this point, but the belief is that it is more than the seven years and $142 million disaster of a deal that Carl Crawford signed with the Red Sox, at least as far as the money is concerned. We recently took a look at whether or not Ellsbury is, in fact, the next Crawford as so many have pegged him to be.

From a personnel standpoint, this is definitely a fit. Ellsbury fits both into the field and into the lineup as a tremendous need for the Yankees, and should be a big boost for their lineup, particularly in the early years of this contract. How his game, which is primarily built around speed, will translate in the long term remains to be seen.

What this certainly means from a Yankees perspective is that Robinson Cano is all but a goner in the Bronx. The two sides haven’t been able to get anywhere near a contract agreement since negotiations began, leaving the Yankees to pursue the other major marquee name on the market. Of course, one could make the argument that they would have been better served to throw massive money at Cano, rather than the speedster in Jacoby Ellsbury.

UPDATE: The deal is done, pending an Ellsbury physical. Expect the final number to include seven years, and somewhere in the neighborhood of $150 million.