Windows 7 » y. "Even the bullpen guys were telling m

Its not the first time that the New York Yankees have raided the Boston Red Sox for a free agent outfielder -- Johnny Damon comes to mind -- and the Bronx Bombers werent shy about offering big money for an outfielder that is a premier base stealer, when healthy. Numbers Game looks at the Yankees addition of Jacoby Ellsbury. The Yankees Get: CF Jacoby Ellsbury. Ellsbury, 30, has been a productive player when healthy, a career .297 hitter who has led the American League in steals three times. However, hes missed a lot of time -- 264 games to be precise -- over the last four seasons, which makes a long-term investment risky, particularly for a player on the north side of 30 years of age. While Ellsbury had a 32-home-run season in 2011, thats the only season of his career in which hes finished with more than 10 home runs so, even in new Yankee Stadium, which plays well to lefthanded hitters, its not likely that Ellsbury will be a significant power threat. He could hit double figures in home runs, but its a long way from 10 or 12 to 30-plus. But, a little power to go with tremendous base-stealing ability makes Ellsbury an asset offensively. Over the course of his career, he has stolen 241 bases in 287 attempts (83.9%), including a ridiculous 52 in 56 attempts (92.9%) last season. The question, on top of whether Ellsbury can stay healthy, is for how much longer can he be that top-of-the-order base-stealing threat? Is it three years? Five? Given Ellsburys speed on the bases, it should come as little surprise that he covers a lot of ground in centre field. Over the last four seasons, he ranks among the Top 10 centre fielders with 25 Defensive Runs Saved, while ranking sixth in Ultimate Zone Rating. Putting Ellsbury in centre field, moving Brett Gardner back to left field and Ichiro Suzuki in right will give the Yankees exceptional range in the outfield and ought to help their pitching staff to some degree. Despite his injuries, Ellsbury has accumulated a fWAR of 22.4 since 2008, which ranks fourth among centre fielders. The odds are that, over the course of the deal, there will be years that the Yankees regret because injury and/or age prevent Ellsbury from contributing like he has to this point in his career, but if there are five really good years in there, then that might be enough for the Yankees. A healthy Ellsbury improves their chances of returning to the postseason. The Red Sox are likely to move Shane Victorino to centre field to make up for the loss of Ellsbury and they could still be active in the free agent market looking for a corner outfielder. Additionally, prospect Jackie Bradley Jr. could be ready for another chance to stick as an every day player in the majors. Signed for seven years and $153-million, with an option for an eighth year that would run the contract to $169-million, Ellsbury is the latest in a long line of lucrative Yankees free agent signings, many of which have not panned out, but its only money and the Yankees generate enough of it that they can afford to swing and miss every so often, particularly with the chance to hit a proverbial home run. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Harry Giles Kings Jersey . His actions are much louder on the Fenway Park mound. De La Rosa had another strong home start, going seven solid innings to lift the Boston Red Sox to a 2-1 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night. Nemanja Bjelica Jersey . The Miami Heat star tops the leagues global list of top-selling jerseys for the 2012-13 season, edging Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls, Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder and James Heat teammate Dwyane Wade for the No. http://www.nbakingsonline.com/Authentic-DeAaron-Fox-Kings-Jersey/ .C. -- The RBC Cups semifinal participants were decided by a pair of overtime games. Marvin Bagley III Kings Jersey . The Marlies centre set up three goals, including the game-winner, as Toronto cruised to a 4-1 victory over the Oklahoma City Barons in American Hockey League action. Chris Webber Jersey . Amare Stoudemire had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Carmelo Anthony scored 21 and the New York Knicks won their eighth straight game, 93-92 over Philadelphia on Friday night, sending the Sixers to their 23rd straight loss. NEW YORK -- Gio Gonzalez apparently gets his swing ready in spring training, too. The pitcher homered in his first start for the second straight season -- sprinting around the bases because he didnt realize it was gone -- and tossed three-hit ball to lead the Washington Nationals over the New York Mets 5-1 Wednesday night. "I think it was the fastest home run jog in baseball," Gonzalez said. "I was about to slide home!" Gonzalez also registered six of Washingtons 13 strikeouts, giving the staff a total of 31. In a post on Twitter, the Nationals said thats the most for any team after two games in modern major league history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. STATS confirmed the 31 whiffs by New York batters were the most in the first two games since at least 1914, surpassing the previous mark of 28 by Houston hitters against Texas last season. Ian Desmond also went deep and Jayson Werth had four hits for the Nationals, who followed up their 10-inning comeback on opening day with a more routine victory against one of Gonzalezs favourite foes. The left-hander walked one in six comfortable innings, improving to 6-0 with a 1.62 ERA in his last seven starts against New York. Left fielder Bryce Harper threw out a runner at the plate, and Denard Span scored twice following extra-base hits. "Today was definitely a little smoother for me personally," first-year Nationals manager Matt Williams said. "What you worry about is a little bit of a letdown, with everything coming out of spring and a day off, its easy to have a letdown. But they didnt. They were ready to go today, which was great." Mets manager Terry Collins stacked his lineup with eight right-handed hitters, but it hardly mattered. New York provided little support for Bartolo Colon (0-1), touched up for nine hits over six innings in his Mets debut. The beefy right-hander signed a $20 million, two-year contract in the off-season after going 18-6 with a 2.65 ERA for Oakland last year, when he finished serving a 50-game suspension for a positive drug test. Desmond and Gonzalez (1-0) both homered in the fifth against Colon. "I think I pitched very well," Colon said through a translator. "They were just coming out a little high, thats all." Drew Storen, Tyler Clippard and Craig Stammen finished a three-hitter. Mets closer Bobby Parnell has a partially torn elbow ligament that might require surgery, and new outfielder Chris Young came out in the second inning with tightness in his right quadriceps.dddddddddddd The injury kept Young on the bench in the opener. "I feel terrible about not being able to contribute," he said. Juan Lagares, an early bright spot, got the Mets off to a good start with a leadoff triple. He scored on David Wrights sacrifice fly, snapping Gonzalezs streak of 16 shutout innings at Citi Field. Consecutive doubles by Werth and Adam LaRoche tied it in the fourth. Desmond hit the first pitch of the fifth over the left-centre wall, and Gonzalez went deep two batters later. A right-handed batter, the pitcher drove a 2-2 delivery off the railing just above the shortened fence in left-centre at Citi Field. The ball caromed back onto the outfield grass and Gonzalez sprinted home, unaware that second base umpire Todd Tichenor was signalling home run. "That was epic. Thats going to go down in the memory bank for a long, long time," Desmond said. Back in the dugout and out in the bullpen, Gonzalezs teammates had a blast. "I was trying to catch my breath as the guys were piling on," Gonzalez said. "I was just trying to find an oxygen tank." The umpires didnt even look at a replay. "Even the bullpen guys were telling me, You were running away like you were running from the cops!" Gonzalez said. "I dont know what that is about, but I guess I know what it is now." It was Gonzalezs third career homer. He also connected during his first outing last season off Miamis Kevin Slowey, and in August 2012 against Houston right-hander Armando Galarraga. "He swung that bat good, didnt he?" Williams said. "Hes got bragging rights for a few days, anyway." Ruben Tejada tried to score from first when Lagares doubled inside third base with two outs in the fifth, but was cut down at the plate on a strong throw by Harper. "The things he can do with that arm are pretty special," Desmond said. "Your instincts tell you what a normal outfielder can do, not one with a Bazooka." NOTES: Williams recalled playing third base behind Colon when the right-hander made his major league debut with Cleveland in 1997. ... Washington RHP Jordan Zimmermann starts the series finale Thursday afternoon against RHP Zack Wheeler. ' ' '