NEW YORK -- The Yankees are considering filing a grievance in hopes of recouping some of the $26 million owed to outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, the New York Post reported on Friday.

Citing several people with knowledge of the situation, the newspaper said that the Yankees hope to lower that figure because Ellsbury used an outside facility to rehab the injuries that have kept him off the field.

The club has not commented on the report.

Ellsbury has not played in a Major League game since the 2017 postseason. The 36-year-old was released by the club on Wednesday in order to clear space for prospects on the 40-man roster.

He is owed $21 million in 2020, plus a $5 million buyout of an option for the '21 season. Those figures count against the Yankees’ luxury-tax bill.

This past spring, general manager Brian Cashman said that Ellsbury was working out at an EXOS facility in Phoenix, rather than reporting to camp in Tampa, Fla., with the other position players.

“It makes no sense to fly him here, give him meal money [and] pay him housing allowance to get less physical care than he’s getting right now there,” Cashman said Feb. 17.

Ellsbury finally reported on March 17, nearly a month behind the rest of the squad, and he did not appear in any exhibition games. Ellsbury’s on-field work was largely limited to light agility drills and playing catch.

Once viewed as the Yankees’ starting center fielder and leadoff hitter, Ellsbury signed a seven-year, $153 million deal with the club prior to the 2014 season.

He has been sidelined by a variety of ailments over the past two years, including recovery from left hip surgery performed in August 2018 and plantar fasciitis that set back his rehab during the 2018-19 offseason.

Ellsbury aims to return to the diamond with another club in 2020, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. If an organization adds Ellsbury to its Major League roster, it would be responsible only for paying the league-minimum salary.