Yankees’ rival for Corey Seager is worst-case scenario

The reason Corey Seager has been so often mocked to the New York Yankees by prognosticators who are “in the know” is not just because the Bombers need a shortstop or because his lefty power will help “balance the lineup,” eradicating that phrase from our vocabulary for at least a few weeks.

No, no. The “Seager-to-the-Yankees” projections also came in flurries because of another important element: most people assumed the Los Angeles Dodgers were ready to move on, especially after acquiring Trea Turner.

Well … about that …

According to Jon Heyman, the Dodgers haven’t quite given up the fight yet, which might explain why Seager just bought a massage chair for his private plane.

The good news? Heyman singling out the Yankees and Dodgers as the two teams “playing for” Seager means Brian Cashman is firmly in the bidding war, and the Texas Rangers — recently rumored too — might as well be watching from a different stadium.

The bad news? Dodger Money.

The Yankees and Dodgers are both in on Corey Seager.

Frankly, we thought LA had too many needs this offseason to get seriously involved in retaining their World Series MVP. They acquired Turner at the deadline, and have been waiting patiently to play Gavin Lux for three years. Using Turner at short and Lux at second (or even … Marcus Semien?) before entertaining a midseason extension seemed like the logical next step, especially as Andrew Friedman tried to balance so much money elsewhere with so many holes to fill.

It’s easy to forget, but … this team does’t have much of a rotation at the moment. Trevor Bauer is not a Major League Baseball player, even though he’s opted into his 2022 salary. Max Scherzer is on the free agent market, and some have projected him to receive up to $50 million annually (crazy, but … people are saying). Clayton Kershaw is available as well, and though no one really believes he’ll leave (right?), he’s no longer under contract.

Dustin May is rehabbing from Tommy John. Tony Gonsolin can’t be counted on. David Price was mostly a non-factor. Frankly, it’s a bit of a mess.

Can the Dodgers address all these pitching deficiencies and still dole out $250 million more to Seager? Heyman would like you to think they can. If they choose to, that’d be brutal news for a Yankees team hoping to play in the deep end of the pool all by themselves.

Without Carlos Correa or Seager in the Bronx, things could swiftly become a bit of a mess, trending towards a Trevor Story overpay or a desperation one-year patch. So, Dodgers, if you’re reading this … lay off? Do you really want to pay this much for a future third baseman anyway?

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