Report: Neil Walker, Yankees Agree to Contract Pending Physical

Veteran second baseman Neil Walker is on the move after reportedly agreeing to a deal to play with the New York Yankees.

On Monday, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported the two sides agreed on a deal, pending a physical.

Walker has moved around frequently since after the 2015 season. He was traded by the Pittsburgh Pirates to the New York Mets in December 2015. Walker spent all of 2016 and most of 2017 with the Mets before they traded him to the Milwaukee Brewers in August. 

With the Mets and Brewers last season, Walker posted a solid .265/.362/.439 slash line in 111 games. Despite the pressure of a contract year ahead of him, the 32-year-old said he never let it get to him after being traded to a playoff contender late in the season. 

"I've tried not to get caught up in my personal situation," Walker told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in August. "I had four years of arbitration, then I took a qualifying offer (for $17.2 million). So, really, I've been playing year to year for almost eight years."

Now, Walker has finally been able to receive some security with his deal from the Yankees. He's been a solid and dependable hitter throughout his career, owning .272/.341/.437 slash line and 113 OPS+, per Baseball Reference.

The major caveat with Walker throughout his career and moving forward is injuries. He has only reached the 150-game mark twice in his nine MLB seasons and has missed a total of 100 games over the past two seasons. 

As Walker plays into his mid-30s, his durability isn't likely to get better.

Despite the risk for Walker at this stage of his career, his bat is still good enough to make him a starting second baseman. He adds depth to the Yankees lineup as they continue to build a formidable offense and look to take the next step in 2018 after reaching the American League Championship Series last year.