By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com | 1/31/2013 3:30 P.M. ET
NEW YORK -- The Yankees are close to an agreement with free-agent slugger Travis Hafner, who is expected to help fill the club's designated hitter slot for the 2013 season.
Talks between the two sides have continued to progress, and Hafner is expected to receive a Major League contract. A source confirmed to MLB.com that a deal is in place and, pending the finalization of contract language, could be announced on Thursday or Friday.
Hafner, 35, batted .228 with 12 home runs and 34 RBIs in 64 games for the Indians last season. Cleveland cut ties with Hafner in October, choosing to pay the left-handed hitter a $2.75 million buyout instead of a $13 million option for the '13 season.
The owner of 201 home runs over 11 Major League seasons, Hafner has not played the field since 2007. As a full-time DH with the Yanks, he would essentially fill the role envisioned last season for Raul Ibanez.
The Yankees have also been in the market for a right-handed hitter who can play some outfield and hit left-handed pitching well, a role filled the past two seasons by Andruw Jones, suggesting that Hafner would primarily be asked to play against right-handers.
Hafner has been limited to an average of 86 games per season over the past five years, and has struggled against left-handed pitching. However, dating back to 2008, Hafner has hit .269 with a .371 on-base percentage against right-handed pitching.
Last year, the Yanks and Indians held discussions about a preseason trade that could have sent Hafner to New York in a deal for pitcher A.J. Burnett, but the talks stalled and the Yankees sent Burnett to the Pirates instead.
Bryan Hoch is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @bryanhoch and read his MLBlog, Bombers Beat. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Hafner, Yankees close to finalizing contract
Dengan url
https://nokiaponselpintar.blogspot.com/2013/02/hafner-yankees-close-to-finalizing.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Hafner, Yankees close to finalizing contract
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Hafner, Yankees close to finalizing contract
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar