The New York Yankees and New York Mets are after the same pitcher to fill the spot of a lefty relief pitcher: Boone Logan, who has a pretty successful history in the Big Apple.
Logan, 32, spent four seasons with the Yankees (2010-2013) before leaving in free agency to join the Colorado Rockies. He had a poor first two years with the Rockies despite his impressive strikeout rate, but last season established him as a solid bullpen presence once again, posting a 3.69 ERA through 46.1 innings, striking out 11.1 batters per nine innings and posting a 2.85 k/bb ratio along with a 1.014 WHIP, the best of his career.
Both the Yankees and Mets are looking for a left-handed pitcher to bolster their bullpen. Jerry Blevins is likely to hit free agency and leave the Mets in this offseason, and the Yankees have traded away three left-handed pitchers over the last year: Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller and Justin Wilson. Chapman and Miller did bring in a nice haul in prospects, but both of them helped the teams they landed at to make the World Series, with Miller on pace to win the World Series MVP if it wasn’t for the final game. Chapman ended up putting a ring on his finger before going into free agency.
Logan started out his career with the White Sox (3 seasons), played one year with the Braves and then joined the Yankees in 2010. He posted a 3.38 ERA in four seasons with the Bronx Bombers, striking out 10.9 batters per nine innings, and has done a good job of maintaining his velocity over the years. He held left handed hitters last season to a fantastic .139 batting average, which makes him a very attractive prospect for more than just the New York teams. Logan made $6.25 million last season, and will probably be looking for a three-year deal that begins at $18 million total. Coming off his best season in his major league career, that sounds realistic.