Plan B has evaporated for the Yankees.
Nolan Arenado and the Rockies reached agreement on an eight-year, $260 million pact that will keep the slugger from next offseason’s free-agent market.
The Yankees privately held more affinity for Arenado than Manny Machado. It was not among the primary reasons they did not aggressively pursue Machado. They were concerned about adding another 10-year contract after importing the 10 years left on Giancarlo Stanton’s contract last offseason. They believed Miguel Andujar, the AL Rookie of the Year runner-up, had the capacity to improve defensively and give them a long-term answer at third at a fraction of the cost.