According to ESPN.com, the New York Yankees agreed to an eight-year deal with free agent first basemen Mark Teixeira.
The agreement, which is subject to a physical, includes a signing bonus of about $5 million and a complete no-trade provision, The Associated Press reported.
The Yankees had made an offer to Teixeira weeks ago, but then withdrew it; their intention all along was to make an offer, which they did formally on Tuesday, if it fell within parameters acceptable to the organization. The contract will pay Teixeira, who made it clear he wanted to make a decision on where to play next season and beyond by Christmas, an average of $22.5 million per season.
The Yankees had $88.5 million coming off the books (included in that total — $23.4 million on Jason Giambi, $16 million on Bobby Abreu, and $11 million to both Mike Mussina and Carl Pavano), and even with the Teixeira contract, they expect their payroll to fall below $200 million. New York has committed $423.5 million in salary in the last month, with $161 million going to left-handed pitcher CC Sabathia ($23 million over seven years) and $82.5 million to right-hander A.J. Burnett ($18.5 million over five) last week alone.The deal also virtually eliminates any chance that free-agent outfielder Manny Ramirez has a landing place with the Yankees. New York does have money left to add another starting pitcher, most likely veteran left-hander Andy Pettitte at $10 million if he agrees to terms soon.
I think I just heard the collective heads of every Boston Red Sox fan explode at the same time.
I would say that this news is unbelievable but it’s very much believable. If the Yankees want a player, there’s nothing that’ll stop them from acquiring said player. Other than signing Manny, the Bombers essentially accomplished what they wanted to accomplish this offseason by acquiring pitching, as well as the desire to get younger.





