According to Associated Press (AP) sources, the Yankees won’t be paying Jacoby Ellsbury remaining $26 million of his contract, after the player received third-party medical attention, without the team go-ahead.
On Friday, AP journalists reportedly spoke to sources saying that both Ellsbury and his manager, Scott Boras, have been informed that the contract would be moved to a ‘nonguaranteed deal,’ meaning the contract doesn’t need to be honored.
On Wednesday, the Yankees also officially released Ellsbury from the team, after he had spent nearly two years without participating in a game. The rift between the organization and the athlete came after he submitted himself for treatment at the Progressive Medical Center in Atlanta in the care of Dr. Viktor Bouquette, the Yankees specified elaborating on the issue.
This rumor about the Yankees trying to recoup part of the salary is not new either. The New York Post also reported earlier that Ellsbury will most likely not get paid the remainder of his contractual money – a welcome move for the Yankees as they wouldn’t have to deal with a pesky luxury tax.
At the same time, it’s likely for the MLB players’ union to take action. This is what an official statement said:
“The players’ association will vigorously defend any action taken against Jacoby or his contract and is investigating potential contract violations by his employer.”
Prohibitive Insurances
The issue the Yankees has with Ellsbury is simple to understand– high-value players may not receive treatment outside team facilities, especially if such treatment is not a matter of serious or emergency conditions. Ellsbury should have also gone with his team’s advice, as his rehab was to blame for the athlete’s inability to participate in a game for nearly two years now.
An article by Forbes has suggested that the Yankees have decided to use a policy that would allow them to remove Ellsbury and claim back a part of the agreed-upon salary. Something that Forbes contributor Wallace Matthews described as an area where the team would need to tread ‘very cautiously into.
Put plainly, Matthews raised the question of possible insurance fraud – without actually saying it was. All things considered, Ellsbury and the Yankees may simply have a genuine beef over the breach of confidence established by Ellsbury’s decision to go with Dr. Bouquette – no more, no less.
In honesty, though, the player’s mishap during rehab was most likely not the result of malpractice or the facilities chosen by Ellsbury. Nevertheless, the Yankees have decided to cut ties after Ellsbury hasn’t been able to play for almost two years now.
What will follow next is anyone’s guess, but recouping Ellsbury’s salary may not be the best course of action in terms of team’s reputation.
