MLB Rumors: Yankees Agree Deal With Former World Series Champion

The New York Yankees are set to add a World Series champion ahead of the season.

Things have started to get clearer for the New York Mets after the Opening Day game as the club released veteran pitcher Mike Montgomery.

The 31-year-old’s free agency didn’t last long as the Yankees have now agreed to a deal with Montgomery in a minor league, Robert Murray of FanSided reported.

This would be the second consecutive minors deal for Montgomery, who joined the Mets during the winter. The left-hander had an impressive spring training with the team, having thrown 4.2 scoreless innings.

He also struck out seven batters, allowing four hits and issuing one walk.

The Mets appeared to have utilized Montgomery in order for the veteran to be able to pitch in multiple roles. However, he fell short in his attempt to secure a spot on the Opening Day roster.

Montgomery failed to pick up where he left off in the spring training and had a poor start in the Mets’ 10-2 exhibition loss to the Miami Marlins last month, having allowed five runs in 2 2⁄3 innings.

The underwhelming showing led to the Mets finalizing a decision to release Montgomery, who had had an opt-out clause in his contract , allowing the six-year veteran to look for a new team ahead of the regular season.

After the game, Montgomery admitted that he wanted to stay in New York while also insisting that he is “confident” with his game at the moment.

"Obviously, I want to be in New York, and I’m pretty confident in myself and my stuff right now," Montgomery said. "I don’t look at a game like today in spring as make-or-break for me at this point in my career."

Prior to his recent apparent dwindling, Montgomery has had a tremendous professional career as a swingman since his MLB debut in 2015. He was able to record a great 3.84 Earned Run Average (ERA) in 541 innings and 183 appearances (with 70 as a starter).

More importantly, Montgomery has earned the save in the Chicago Cubs’ historic Game 7 win over the Cleveland Indians at the 2016 World Series.

At present, Montgomery is eager to pull off a career resurgence now that the Yankees’ bullpen such as Zack Britton and Justin Wilson are dealing with injuries.

The former Cub is viewed as someone who could add some left-handed depth to the unit.