In dire need of some help at third base the New York Yankees have come to an agreement with former Boston Red Sox, Kevin Youkilis, bringing one of the more despised players in the eyes of Yankee fans to the Bronx.
While most Yankee fans may hate seeing one of Boston's own in their uniform, it is a one year $12 million deal, meaning that he won't be on the team past this season. With Alex Rodirguez out for the forseable future when he goes under the knife for hip surgery in January, that will cause him to miss most of the season, tabbing Youkilis makes sense.
While he was apart of the deteriorating locker room that ended both the tenures of Terry Francona and Bobby Valentine in Beantown, there is no questioning Youk's abilities. He is a .283 career hitter, and between Boston and the Chicago White Sox last season, he hit .238 with 19 homers and 60 RBI. Playing in the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium have been an issue of late for Youkilis, who has hit .231 in the Bronx the past three seasons combined.
Youkilis' ability to come up in the clutch will be a sure boon to the Yankees in 2013.
New York is still expected to resign Ichiro Suzuki to a new contract to play right field, and if they are successful in doing so, the Yankees would have spent close to $50 million on signing free agents over the age of 35! And this is a franchise that has prided itself of late to state publicly that they want to "trim the fat" of bloated contracts to old players.
If and when A-Rod returns, Youkilis has the ability to play both the outfield and first base, so the need to go out and get a top flight outfielder is certainly reduced with Youkilis' presence on the team.
The Yankees still need a catcher, however.
While most Yankee fans may hate seeing one of Boston's own in their uniform, it is a one year $12 million deal, meaning that he won't be on the team past this season. With Alex Rodirguez out for the forseable future when he goes under the knife for hip surgery in January, that will cause him to miss most of the season, tabbing Youkilis makes sense.While he was apart of the deteriorating locker room that ended both the tenures of Terry Francona and Bobby Valentine in Beantown, there is no questioning Youk's abilities. He is a .283 career hitter, and between Boston and the Chicago White Sox last season, he hit .238 with 19 homers and 60 RBI. Playing in the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium have been an issue of late for Youkilis, who has hit .231 in the Bronx the past three seasons combined.
Youkilis' ability to come up in the clutch will be a sure boon to the Yankees in 2013.
New York is still expected to resign Ichiro Suzuki to a new contract to play right field, and if they are successful in doing so, the Yankees would have spent close to $50 million on signing free agents over the age of 35! And this is a franchise that has prided itself of late to state publicly that they want to "trim the fat" of bloated contracts to old players.
If and when A-Rod returns, Youkilis has the ability to play both the outfield and first base, so the need to go out and get a top flight outfielder is certainly reduced with Youkilis' presence on the team.
The Yankees still need a catcher, however.
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