Stephen Drew Seeking Opt Out

Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

It has been a very slow off-season for some key players. Stephen Drew is one of those guys and is willing to change his demands to sign with a club. The shortstop is now reportedly seeking a multi-year deal with an opt out clause after the first year. It has been thought for a while that Drew will either sign with the Mets or end up back with the Red Sox but his new contract commands can change the game a lot.

What does this mean for the Yankees? This should be where the Yankees go all in to sign the left handed bat. Not only would he have a great swing for Yankee Stadium with the short porch in right but what do the Yankees have to lose? They already blew past the $189 million threshold and have gaping holes in the infield.

Alex Rodriguez has been suspended and Mark Teixeira is coming off a major wrist injury. Derek Jeter is coming off a 17-game season and will turn 40 in June. As for the new additions, Kelly Johnson was seen as nothing more than a platoon player and Brian Roberts hasn’t been able to remain healthy in years.

Stephen Drew has been a solid player since 2007. In every year since then, he has hit at least 12 home runs and has had at least 60 RBI with the exception of 2011 and 2012 in which he was nursing a major ankle injury. He also missed some time due to a hamstring problem in 2013 but still managed to hit .253 with 13 homers and 67 RBI in just 124 games. Very good production from the shortstop position.

Drew will turn 31 in March and will likely not get more than four years. That would take him through age 34 which isn’t bad at all. He doesn’t have the best defense but it is solid. To go along with his bat however, the infielder seems to be a perfect fit for New York.

If he opts out after year one, so be it. That’s what the Yankees would probably prefer anyway. If he decides to stay in the Bronx, Drew can fill the shoes of soon to retire Derek Jeter and he can fill in for any other of the infield question marks the Yankees have. Their infield is a mess but signing the versatile 30-year-old can prove to be an incredible signing in the long run.

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