MLB team the New York Yankees agreed deals with Toyota and Audi as automotive sponsors, taking over from General Motors Corp.
Yankees chief operating officer Lonn Trost said that Toyota and Audi will take over as the club's auto sponsors from 2009. The new deals are for ballpark signage.
General Motors was a Yankees sponsor from 2006-08. "We understand their financial condition," Trost said. "I think it was a mutual understanding."
GM spokesman John McDonald said that in light of the current economic conditions, the automaker is reviewing all of its sponsorship activities as part of a plan to cut its marketing and promotions budget by 20 percent.
