Damon, Yankees reach preliminary agreement on $52 million, four-year contract
NEW YORK (AP) -- The New York Yankees grabbed center fielder Johnny Damon away from the rival Boston Red Sox, reaching a preliminary agreement Tuesday night on a $52 million, four-year contract.
Details of the deal were still being negotiated and Damon must pass a physical, a baseball official said on condition of anonymity because negotiations were not yet final.
Damon fills a double void for the Yankees, giving them a speedy center fielder who can cover ground and a leadoff hitter to top a star-studded lineup that also includes Derek Jeter, Gary Sheffield, AL MVP Alex Rodriguez, Hideki Matsui and Jason Giambi.
Bernie Williams' defense declined significantly over the past four seasons. And while Damon's arm is not much better, he does cover a lot of ground, which is important in Yankee Stadium.
Agent Scott Boras had been seeking a seven-year contract for Damon. The offer Damon accepted was essentially the same as the deal Matsui agreed to with the Yankees last month.
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=AkH9Kd.KKmuzqhVo8.akXpYRvLYF?slug=ap-yankees-damon&prov=ap&type=lgns
6 comments:
I half-way expected this. Damon wants the NY limelight and is all about the money. Why couldn't Sox match this offer? OR did they? I am curious. Was Boston stuck on a three-year deal?
Yet another gaping hole to by filled by Sox before Spring. Cory Patterson? I hope this means Manny is likely to stay put.
The Sox offered four years at $10 mil per. They weren't stuck on a three-year deal. They just didn't think he was worth $13 mil per year.
They made a business decision and Damon did the same. When I look at it that way, I get it. But then I read what Damon said afterwards and it just makes me crazy. "I tried everything in my power to try to come back..."
Uh, no you didn't Johnny. They offered more and you took the bigger paycheck. It's as simple as that. I get it but PLEASE spare me the song and dance about how the Sox didn't step up. $40 million is a whole lot of stepping up.
I once thought Johnny Damon just doesn't belong in a Yankee uniform but on second thought, I guess he does.
"Johnny, you're nothing to me now. You're not a brother, you're not a friend. I don't want to know you or what you do. I don't want to see you at the hotels, I don't want you near my house. When you see our mother, I want to know a day in advance, so I won't be there. You understand? "
Jim Caple has article on Damon in New York. Shades of Giambi?
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=caple/051221
Sox Fans Bid Idiot Adieu
More Cowbell
Playing with posting some html tag if link is broken go here
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/simmons/index
sports guy full on....
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/051223
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