AL East Notes: Ellsbury, Red Sox, Ichiro, Yankees

In an interview with Mut & Merloni on WEEI, ESPN's Buster Olney said that the perception is that Jacoby Ellsbury will take Scott Boras' advice when it comes to free agency.  That means chasing the biggest payday available, and Olney sees the outfielder leaving the Red Sox if he hits the open market.  Here's more from around baseball..

• Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that there was not unanimity in the Yankees front office about bringing back Ichiro Suzuki and that the move was fueled by the club's hierarchy.  There was specific disagreement about giving the veteran a two-year contract and there were execs who would have preferred to see that money directed to Russell Martin instead.
• The Orioles' trade of Luis Ayala shows their faith in left-hander T.J. McFarland, writes Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun.  O's skipper Buck Showalter echoed those sentiments and also added that the club likes the player they got back, reliever Chris Jones.
• MLB's 40-somethings have shown that they can still produce, including the elder statesmen of the Yankees, writes John Schlegel of MLB.com.
• While it's a small sample size, the early returns on Vernon Wells are promising for the Yankees, writes MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince.