Reds could force Yankees to re-sign DJ LeMahieu and that would be great

The Reds are reportedly interested in Francisco Lindor, which could force the Yankees’ hand.

You knew the slow moving offseason was going to give way to more rumors and more teams getting involved in talks regarding trades and free agents. It’s now reached the point where the Cincinnati Reds have gotten involved at the forefront of the high-profile landscape.

According to the latest industry buzz, the Reds are interested in getting their hands on a high-profile shortstop, whether it be via trade or free agency. You know what that means! Another team potentially involved in the Francisco Lindor sweepstakes to drive up the asking price.

If that turns out to be the case, the New York Yankees‘ hand might be forced to re-sign DJ LeMahieu — that is, if they’re at all considering the scenario in which Lindor comes in via trade to take over at shortstop, Gleyber Torres shifts back over to second base, and LeMahieu leaves in free agency.

The main reason this could force the Yankees’ hand to re-sign LeMahieu is because the Reds could very well be desperate enough to surrender a haul for Lindor in their quest to contend for one more year, since they still have veteran sluggers Joey Votto, Nick Castellanos, Eugenio Suarez and Mike Moustakas under contract. Those guys aren’t going anywhere, so you might as well try and capitalize while your division isn’t very good.

Sure, they’ll likely lose Trevor Bauer, but Luis Castillo and Sonny Gray atop the rotation is good enough to contend against the Cubs, Pirates, Brewers and Cardinals, all of whom aren’t very good or are facing serious offseason issues of their own.

If the Reds overpay for Lindor, expect the Yankees to bow out if they’re involved as well. General manager Brian Cashman isn’t going to give up more than he has to in a trade and then give Lindor a huge contract extension.

Would you rather overpay cash for DJLM, or overpay in prospects/MLB talent for Lindor and THEN have to splurge on a contract at least double the size of that? Stop pretending like the Yankees’ money is yours. It’s not! It’s theirs to spend for our entertainment.

Once the Lindor rumors are in the rearview and DJ is back in pinstripes, you’ll thank us (we think).

Yankees should explore this offseason trade with the Phillies

The New York Yankees should call up the Philadelphia Phillies amid their quest to save money and see if they can steal a star pitcher.