TAMPA, Fla. — Jacoby Ellsbury didn’t suit up for a game last season for the Yankees because of a variety of injuries, one of which eventually led to hip surgery.

This year the outfielder, who has two years left on the seven-year, $153-million contract he signed before the 2014 season, won’t even make it to spring training on time.

Manager Aaron Boone disclosed toward the end of his spring kickoff news conference Wednesday that the 35-year-old Ellsbury, whose string of injuries began early in the spring last year, wouldn’t arrive here until “sometime in March.”

“We expected him to be here as an active player from the start,” Boone said. “But just some issues he had with his plantar fasciitis that kind of crept up as he was going through his rehab this winter slowed him a little bit.

“We feel he’s making really good progress but he’ll stay in Arizona (where Ellsbury lives) for at least the next couple of weeks.”

Boone also said right- handed pitching prospect Michael King, whose standout 2018 season ended with Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes/Barre and pushed him very much into the spotlight and earned him a camp invite this year, would be shut down for at least the next three weeks because of a stress reaction in his elbow.

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ARBITRATION: Trevor Bauer, Gerrit Cole and Alex Wood won their salary arbitration cases, giving players a 6-3 advantage over teams to ensure a winning record in consecutive years for the first time since 1989-90.

Bauer won his hearing for the second straight year and was awarded $13 million by James Darby, James Oldham and Sylvia Skratek instead of the Cleveland Indians’ $11 million offer.

Cole was given a $13.5 million salary by Gil Vernon, Steven Wolf and Walt De Treux rather than the Houston Astros’ offer of $11,425,000.

Wood will get $9.65 million instead of the Cincinnati Reds’ $8.7 million offer, Dan Brent, Andrew Strongin and Phillip LaPorte decided.

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa, Oakland closer Blake Treinen and Tampa Bay outfielder Tommy Pham also won their cases this year, while Washington outfielder Michael A. Taylor, Nationals reliever Kyle Barraclough and Toronto reliever Ryan Tepera lost.

Detroit pitcher Michael Fulmer asked for a raise from $575,200 to $3.4 million on Wednesday, and the Tigers argued for $2.8 million. A decision by Matt Goldberg, Robert Herzog and Elizabeth Neumeier is expected Thursday.

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New York Yankees right-hander Luis Severino is the only player still scheduled for a hearing, on Friday.

Severino has asked for $5.25 million for this season, while the Yankees offered $4.4 million.

Severino will be the first Yankee to go through the process since Dellin Betances in 2017, a hearing that resulted in bitter feelings on both sides as well as wounds that have never completely healed from Betances’ standpoint.

TRADE: Washington traded right-handed reliever Trevor Gott to the San Francisco Giants for cash.

PHILLIES: Pitcher Aaron Nola, 25, and the Phillies agreed to a $45 million, four-year contract, avoiding a salary arbitration hearing scheduled for this week.

Nola set career bests last year when he was a first-time All-Star, going 17-6 with a 2.37 ERA. He would have been eligible for free agency after the 2021 season.

Nola gets a $2 million signing bonus, $4 million this year, $8 million in 2020, $11.75 million in 2021 and $15 million in 2022.

Philadelphia has a $16 million team option for the 2023 season with a $4.25 million buyout.

DIAMONDBACKS: The Diamondbacks and catcher Caleb Joseph agreed to a one-year contract that calls for a $1.1 million salary in the major leagues and a $250,000 salary in the minors.


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