Both Brett Gardner and the New York Yankees declined his $2.3 million option for the 2022 MLB season on Thursday, the club announced Thursday.
Given his age (38) and service time, retirement seemed a plausible outcome for the outfielder following the Yankees' loss to the Boston Red Sox in the American League Wild Card Game. However, he was pretty emphatic about wanting to return to the Bronx:
Perhaps the bigger question was whether the Yankees would want Gardner on the roster after one of the worst offensive seasons of his career.
The 2015 All-Star had a .