Former MLB outfielder Johnny Damon is picking the New York

Damon Luis Tiant Jersey , who played for both the Yanks and BoSox during his 18-year career, told TMZ Sports on Thursday he's rooting for the Yankees and expects the playoff upset."New York's my team," he said. "The Yankees, that's who I want to win."The Yanks scored a 7-2 victory over the Oakland Athletics in the AL Wild Card Game on Wednesday night to earn a place in the ALDS opposite the longtime rival Red Sox.They are +140 underdogs (bet $100 to win $140) heading into the series,perOddsShark. Boston is a -160 favorite (bet $160 to win $100) after posting an MLB-best 108-54 regular-season record.New York went 100-62.Damon told TMZ he believes the short best-of-five series will benefit the Yankees, however, and he thinks the pressure is firmly on Boston's shoulders."If the Red Sox don't win [the World Series], it's a failed season http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-dustin-pedroia-jersey ," he said.The Sox hold a slight edge in both runs scored (876-851, the top two totals in MLB) and team ERA (3.75-3.78).The hyped ALDS matchup starts Friday night at Fenway Park in Boston. The New York Yankees and outfielder Aaron Hicksagreed to a seven-year, $70 million contract extension, the club announced on Monday.New York Yankees YankeesThe New York Yankees today announced that they have signed OF Aaron Hicks to a 7-year contract extending through the 2025 season, with a club option for the 2026 season. This contract replaces his 1-year contract for 2019 that was announced on Jan 11.Jack Curry of YES Network first reported the agreement.Jack Curry JackCurryYESJust bumped into Aaron Hicks outside the clubhouse. He鈥檚 smiling widely and accepting congrats from several people.Hicks, 29, has spent the last three seasons with the Yankees. He was set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2019 season.While it's not a surprise the Yankees would want to keep Hicks around, the length of the deal is bound to open some eyes. A seven-year deal will take Hicks well into his mid-30s Tony Conigliaro Jersey , and he does not have a huge body of consistent production. He's posted 8.2 wins above replacement over the last two seasons, perFanGraphs, but he only had 2.3 combined his first four MLB seasons.The Yankees sat out the Bryce Harper and Manny Machado markets this offseason but have worked on retaining their current talent. Along with Hicks, the club signed Luis Severino to a four-year, $40 million extension earlier this winter.The Yankees also appear to have their outfield locked up for the foreseeable future. Giancarlo Stanton has an early opt out after the 2020 season, though it seems likely he'll opt into the final seven years of his $325 million contract. Aaron Judge still has not even hit arbitration."Everything is connected," Brian Cashman said, perJames Wagnerof theNew York Times. "Our payrolls continue to increase http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-dustin-pedroia-jersey , and we're preparing and have been preparing for that as these players that we think are very special continue their journeys."If Hicks continues to perform at 3-4 WAR every season, his contract will be one of the biggest bargains in the sport. Hicks actually had ahigher WAR than Bryce Harper in 2018, and Harper could be about to sign the biggest contract in the history of North American sports.That said, seven years is still a long time for a player few would call a foundational building block.