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DJ LeMahieu’s time in Colorado has come to a close.
According to Jack Curry of YES Network, LeMahieu and the New York Yankees agreed to terms on a two-year contract Friday following seven seasons with the Rockies. Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports confirmed the report and noted the deal was worth $24 million.
LeMahieu arrived in Colorado by way of a December 2011 trade with the Chicago Cubs, and he has steadily developed into one of MLB‘s more prolific middle infielders over the past half-decade.
Dating back to 2014, LeMahieu has won three Gold Gloves (2014, 2017, 2018) and nabbed two All-Star nods (2015, 2017). He also led all hitters with a .348 average in 2016.
LeMahieu followed up with a .310/.374/.409 slash line in 2017, but he wasn’t nearly as steady in the batter’s box last season.
All told, the 30-year-old hit .276 with a .749 OPS, although he did crank a career-high 15 home runs and rack up 62 RBI.
Despite some hiccups at the plate, LeMahieu remained one of baseball’s steadiest fielders. According to FanGraphs, his 18 defensive runs saved ranked tops among all second basemen last season.
“For me, this has always been a great place to play,” LeMahieu told ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. “I just feel like the situation with the team, the city and the fans allowed me to flourish. It was the right situation at the right time for me. I’ll forever be thankful for that.”
Now headed to New York, he’s in for an adjustment period.
LeMahieu had grown accustomed to the friendly confines of Coors Field over the past seven seasons, and he has taken advantage of the thin air by posting a .329/.386/.447 slash line in the Rocky Mountains to this point in his career.
However, his numbers away from Coors have been rather pedestrian, and the disparity was especially stark last season when he hit .317 at home compared to .229 on the road.
Understandably, the Yankees are accepting the risk of some regression at the plate.
But even so, LeMahieu should represent a serious upgrade at second base thanks to his top-notch defensive stylings.
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