The New York Yankees have reportedly reached an agreement with free agent DJ LeMahieu on a six-year, $90 million deal according to reports by Jon Morosi and Jeff Passan.
The veteran infielder spent the last two seasons with the Yankees and was an MVP finalist both years, earning himself the nickname “The Machine” for his no-nonsense work ethic and toughness.
“LeMahieu’s return to New York always felt inevitable. It took a while. But he wanted to be there and Yankees get top free agent target,” Passan wrote about the reported deal.
Yankees teammates like Luke Voit and Gleyber Torres made their hopes of LeMahieu returning to the Bronx clear over the course of the offseason, with Voit going so far as to say to Meredith Marakovits last November, “**My gut says he’s going to be a Yankee**.”
Between 2019 and 2020, LeMahieu slashed .336/.386/.536 with 36 home runs, 129 RBI, 150 runs and an OPS+ of 145.
He finished fourth in MVP voting in 2019, his first year with the Yankees and his third career All-Star season, and third in MVP voting during the shortened 2020 regular season. In each of his last two seasons in pinstripes LeMahieu earned Silver Slugger Awards -- the first two of his career.
LeMahieu also notably became the first batter in the modern era (since 1900) to lead the Majors in batting average in both the National League (2016 Rockies - .348) and American League (2020 Yankees - .364) after his outstanding season a year ago.
Yankees fans worldwide have been clamoring for the team to bring back LeMahieu since he officially hit free agency after the 2020 season, and they’ve now gotten their wish.
The Bombers are just weeks away from returning to spring camp to begin the Chase for 28 again in 2021, and they’ll enter the new season as World Series favorites along with the Dodgers.
For the latest updates on all things Yankees, be sure to follow YES Network's social media channels on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and catch the newest edition of Yankees Hot Stove airing Monday at 7 p.m..