Melky Cabrera, the free-agent outfielder, has agreed to a two-year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays for $16 million, according to ESPN.
Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com, broke the news early Friday. The deal will not become final until Cabrera passes a physical, according to a source close to the situation.
“Melky will be a Blue Jay if all goes well,” the source told ESPN.
Cabrera played for the world champion San Francisco Giants last season, but was suspended for 50 games after testing positive for testosterone. At the time of his suspension, Cabrera led the National League in hits and was second in batting average.
Cabrera had 11 home runs, .346 batting average, 60 RBIs and a .390 on base percentage. Those numbers put him in the All-Star Game, where he won the MVP.
After testing positive a month after the All-Star break, Cabrera requested that he be made ineligible to win the NL batting title. The award went to his former Giants teammate Buster Posey. Posey set career highs with a .336 average, 24 homers and 103 RBIs.
The signing of Cabrera is another big addition for the Blue Jays this week. Earlier in the week the Blue Jays made a blockbuster trade with the Miami Marlins. The Marlins sent shortstop Jose Reyes and pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle to Toronto involving a dozen players.
The Blue Jays hope by adding Cabrera they can reach the playoffs after going 73-89 this past season. Toronto has not reached the playoffs since winning its second straight World Series in 1993.
The Blue Jays already have sluggers Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista on the roster. Encarnacion hit 42 homers last year and is a two-time home run champ. Bautista hit 27 home runs, but the combination of both sluggers did not put a lot of runs on the board.
Toronto only averaged 4.42 runs per game last season.
