Yankees, Brett Gardner come to resolution on future

Brett Gardner has been with the Yankees since 2008.

Brett Gardner took a few moments to look around Yankee Stadium and soak it all in the night the Yankees‘ 2018 season ended with a Game 4 ALDS loss to the Boston Red Sox on Oct. 9.

His down season at age 35 combined with the big-dollars club option that remained in his four-year, $52-million contract inevitably led to some reminiscing over his 11 seasons as a big-league outfielder, all of them as a Yankee.

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Turns out there will be a 12th after all.

The Yankees passed on picking up a $12.5 million club option for 2018, but Gardner will be back on a new one-year contract, the club announced on Wednesday.

Gardner reportedly will make $7.5 million next season, MLB.com reported.

The Yankees had until Friday to make a decision on Gardner, who would have become a free agent if a new deal hadn’t been worked out.

After the Game 4 of the ALDS, Gardner expressed hope that he would remain a Yankee even if it meant returning on a lesser contract and being a part-time player.

“I’d love to come back here,” Gardner said on Oct. 9. “I’ve never played anywhere else. We’ll see what that looks like. Obviously they’ve got a lot of young guys and a lot of guys already are on the roster. I’ve been here for a long time and my agent and I have a great relationship with (GM Brian Cashman) and the rest of the front office and I’m sure when the time is right, we’ll sit down and talk about that.”

A 2015 All-Star and 2016 Gold Glove left fielder, Gardner has been with the Yankees since debuting in the big leagues in 2008, a year in which the franchise missed the playoffs for the first time in 14 years.

Gardner was a platoon outfielder in 2009, the Yankees’ last World Series championship series, and was a starter from 2010 until this past September when he lost his starting job to late-season acquisition Andrew McCutchen.

With McCutchen on the free agent market, the Yankees will return Gardner to a 2019 left field mix that also could include Giancarlo Stanton, Clint Frazier and Jacoby Ellsbury.

Stanton was the Yankees’ primary DH last season, while Ellsbury sat out the entire season with multiple injuries that included August hip surgery and Frazier was sidelined for most of 2018 due to a spring training concussion and in-season post-concussion symptoms.

Gardner’s 2018 season was disappointing.

Although Gardner’s defense again was stellar – he was named a Gold Glove finalist – his offensive numbers had a significant drop from 2017.

In 140 games, Gardner hit .236 with 12 homers, 45 RBI, 16 steals and .a 690 OPS.

In 2017, he hit .264 with a career-best 21 homers, 63 RBI, 23 steals and a .778 OPS.

Retirement wasn’t an option for Gardner.

“I’m not going to stand here and say that I don’t want to play anymore baseball or I’m done,” he said. “My body feels great. I feel healthy.”

Randy Miller may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @RandyJMiller. Find NJ.com on Facebook.