10:53am: The Dodgers are also in serious pursuit of Miller, tweets Olney.
8:37am: Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets that he just spoke with Miller’s agent, who confirmed the Yankees’ interest but said New York is one of multiple teams still in the mix and wouldn’t classify a front-runner.
7:47am: The Yankees are in “serious pursuit” of lefty Andrew Miller, reports ESPN’s Buster Olney (via Twitter). Olney adds that given the teams that are showing the most interest in Miller, a four-year deal is likely, as others have indicated.
Miller was said last week to have multiple three-year offers already in hand, leading to further speculation that four years was the likely outcome. Over the weekend, reports indicated that he’d pared his list of possible destinations down to eight clubs, with AL East rivals Boston and Baltimore among the teams to have shown interest. On Saturday, Miller’s agent, Mark Rodgers, told the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo that the lefty was advancing toward a decision.
MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes pegged Miller for a four-year, $32MM contract in his free agent profile back in mid-October, but given the significant interest in Miller, it seems possible he tops that average annual value. If the Yankees are indeed the team to pay that premium, it could serve as an unofficial means of closing the book on their long relationship with David Robertson — the top reliever on this year’s open market. Robertson is known to be looking for a contract that tops Jonathan Papelbon’s record-setting four-year, $50MM contract, and he reportedly already has received a three-year, $39MM offer. By signing Miller, the Yankees could add a premium high-leverage lefty to pair with breakout rookie right-hander Dellin Betances and collect a draft pick when Robertson signs elsewhere.
