The Yankees haven’t made it any secret that their top offseason priority is to re-sign second baseman DJ LeMahieu. However, they’re facing serious competition from American League rival Toronto. The Blue Jays may be the top threat to the Yankees for LeMahieu, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports.
At last check, the Yankees and LeMahieu – a 2020 AL MVP contender and the league’s batting champion – were far apart in contract negotiations. The 32-year-old LeMahieu is reportedly seeking a five-year, $100MM contract, while the Yankees seem to be in the $75MM to $80MM range over four seasons. The two sides want to stay together, but unless they’re able to close the gap, it could open the door even more for the Blue Jays. MLBTR predicted at the outset of the offseason that the Jays would end up with LeMahieu, who would form an excellent double-play tandem with shortstop Bo Bichette. Cavan Biggio would presumably move from second to third on a Toronto team with LeMahieu, giving the club one of the league’s top infields.
Bichette would like to see LeMahieu move north, as he told teammate Ross Stripling (via Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News): “I think DJ LeMahieu is the best hitter in baseball, and I don’t even really think it’s close, from what I’ve seen. He’s probably the No. 1 player I’d want to play with in the league. If that would happen, that would be awesome for us, but either way, man, our team’s pretty good already.”
Having gone 32-28 in 2020, the Blue Jays do look like a top contender in the AL. They finished a game behind the Yankees, though, and if they’re going to to overtake New York, it would help to steal one of its best players. The Jays are making a real effort to do just that.
Perfect offseason for the Jays would be signing LeMahiu and Springer and then trading for Castillo or Snell. If something like that happens, then all Jays fans can be very optimistic about the upcoming few seasons.
This would be a dream come true!
The fact that a deal with Toronto or any other team suggests to me that DJLM is waiting for the Yankees to blink. He doesn’t want to go elsewhere. I said it before. The Mets or Boston should offer him the fifth year to force the Yankees hand. Canada may be a great place to live but there are no guarantees and if I were an athlete in NA, I would not sign with a Canadian team until the pandemic was 100% behind us. Too many hassles crossing the border especially if you have family.
I don’t think they’ll play in Canada until the pandemic is over given the lack of governance on the US side. (And beyond that, border hassles are mythical which is why the jays have a contingent working on relocation and travel concerns to make it easier for families). Who knows if it makes a difference. I thought Leiter on MLB network did a good job laying out how in normal times the border stuff is overblown.
Buffalo is not Toronto and the stadium is minor league. They will have a tough time attracting the best in the meantime.
They will most likely be playing in Dunedin, near Tampa, FL. All the FA’s will save on state tax and the Jays can front-load the contracts.
If this sounds feasible to you then you lack brain power
That and bring back walker. And a lefty reliever and they’d be incredible. If they can’t get DJ I want Kim
And get mike trout and Shane beiber while you are at it
Not happening. Blue Jays cannot get any of three. Sorry.
Dantheman:
While they are clearly not landing LeMahieu, and Springer, and Castillo, or Snell, it is entirely conceivable for them to land one. Given how much cash they have to spend now, as well as how much is coming off the books next season, I would be surprised if they didn’t sign one. And with the Jay’s good financial shape, and the Yankee’s not so good financial shape, I see LeMahieu as the one they do sign.
I agree that the Blue Jays are in good shape financially, but we cannot overlook their history of spending. They spent 80M for Ryu last year. They are not going to spend over 100M for LeMahieu. With respect to Springer, there is another NY team, the Mets. Castillo is interesting, but are they going to give up the top prospects? I don’t think so. Would Rays trade with Blue Jays for Snell? I don’t think so.
Dantheman:
They don’t have to spend over $100M for LeMahieu. All they have to do is offer something better than 4/$75M, which appears to be the Yank’s max offer.
And if they don’t sign LeMahieu, they could still land Springer. I don’t think it’s guaranteed that he goes to the Mets. The Mets are the favorite at this point, but I’ve been watching baseball long enough to have seen guys not sign with the team everyone thought, when another team swept in at the last minute with a better offer.
4/$75 is not Yank’s final offer. They will match. If equal, DJ will sign with the Yankees. That’s the reality. Sorry. Try Springer. I don’t think Blue Jays will spend the money. Sorry. This is just my opinion. ^^
Tad, see my post above. It’s not so simple. We anticipate 2021 being back to normal by the summer but there are no guarantees and signing across the boarder could have big implications. I’m not sure if the jays get any top shelf talent this year. Hoping I’m wrong because I like everyone else want to just be done with the virus. Sadly though, we can’t just click our heels and it goes away.
Dantheman,
Maybe you forgot these outrageous contracts that Jays ownership has handed out in the past. Vernon Wells got 7 years at $18M per.. BJ Ryan at the richest contract for a reliever (5 years, $47M).
Even going back to Carlos Delgado and Roger Clemens, who signed deals to become the league’s highest paid players.
Heck, ownership green-lighted deals to bring in Jose Reyes and Mark Buehrle, as well as flipping Reyes for Tulowitzki. (And the other years, the Jays were in a rebuild and ownership is not spending in a rebuild.)
Anyways, long story short, Lemahieu and Springer are PERFECT fits for Toronto, and they will go extremely hard for them.
I agree that it will be tough to get them to Toronto over the New York teams, but that isn’t a done deal.
If Cashman and Steinbrenner really wanted Lemahieu to be a Yankee, he’d be a Yankee already. The fact is, there are several other options that are just as enticing. Justin Turner comes to mind.
And they have a nice option at 3B in-house, in Miguel Andujar that comes extremely cheap, allowing the Yankees to maybe sign Trevor Bauer, or trade for an ace.
I expect the Blue Jays to be the top bidder for both players. It depends if they want to come to Toronto or not. Or want to play in New York.
No way Yanks go to 100 mil. Not at this time. Nothing management has said indicates they will go to 100. It would exclude them from every other move.
Dantheman:
Well, it’s all just opinion here, and like everyone else’s, mine could be wrong. But my opinion, based on what the Yankees have said, is $75M is their ceiling. I think they have their payroll budgeted out to get below the tax threshold, and $75M is the max they’ve allotted for LeMahieu.
I also think they don’t think he’s worth going over the threshold for the third consecutive year for, and taking away resources needed for the pitching side. IMO if LeMahieu stays it will be for $75M and if some other team beats that offer he’ll be playing elsewhere.
Dan… I don’t think you’ve read the rumours going around rn… lol
Did Steve Cohen buy the Jays too?!
Lmaooo
Underrated joke
No, but Ed Rogers just hired Steve to be his butler.
None of that matters after the 2 pitchers Chain Bloom signed today. Plan the Red Sox parade NOW !!!!!
Lol Randy……Go Sox! Love it!
Pretty sure Bloom didn’t sign any pitchers today.
I know
I mean if jays sign Springer then Gurriel becomes expendable and sometimes may value him greatly because of the contract and him being so young. So there’s a chance if jays somehow sign both of them trading Gurriel for a top of the rotation arm is possible. With other assets of course.
Gurriel wouldn’t be moved if they sign Springer… theyd look to unload Grichuk… signing Springer and then dealing Gurriel wouldn’t make any sense… that would almost be a wash (not quite I get that Springer is better — but Gurriel is darn good too… it would be silly to trade him away unless the return was literally too good to pass up)
Right. I never understand this nonsense where fans think a team will spend big to sign a good player in order to trade a good player in order to fill a different hole. It’s so convoluted and no team is planning such a thing. Why not just sign the player to fill the hole in the first place?. Simple. You sign good players to ADD them to the good players you already have, not so you can trade them. Such nonsense.
The logic would be sign Springer, and then move Gurriel for a stud pitcher. I’m not sure I’d be comfortable in doing that though, I think it would be better to just dump Grichuk and not get much back at all.
That doesn’t seem like logic at all to me. It sounds like an unnecessarily complicated plan where step one is dependent upon step two, but step two might not happen. I don’t think any rational front office thinks that way. Fans think that way.
I’m honestly not sure if that’s true. I’m sure there are examples of it, but I’m not thinking of any off the top of my head right now. Maybe it isn’t realistic, but I think a scenario that could have some truth to it. The FA pitching market isn’t very good this year. Bauer is maybe the most risky FA of the entire class. Some teams likely have guys like Sonny Gray or Luis Castillo in a tier well above them. Now the Jays do have the farm to acquire them without trading off the major league team, but some win now teams would not.
And in that case I think the sign a star to trade a good player would be in play, based on needs.
It just makes no sense: it’s like if you have a perfectly good rake, but you also need a shovel. What you do is buy a shovel. What you DON’T do is buy another rake and then hope to trade the first rake for a shovel. First off, it’s unnecessarily complicated. Secondly, it backs you into a corner and kills your leverage. Now you HAVE to trade the first rake, a commitment you made before you were certain of the deals available. That gives your trading partner all the leverage and potentially forces you to trade the rake for a less valuable shovel, if that’s all that’s being offered, which is likely due to the leverage you’ve given up. No one would conceive this plan for their own business. This is how fans think, not front offices. Sorry to be so emphatic, but I just think it’s so obvious a principle.
Sign Sutter and trade fingers. (Is 40 years ago recent enough for you?)
I am fine with the outfield the jays have now. They are dead set on adding Springer so my thinking is that you need to move an OF as there’s too many for the three spots. Gurriel seems to have the most interest from other teams and in order to get an ace you need to give up young controllable players. As much as moving grichuk instead would be logical getting a low return back isn’t what you’d aim to do after making a big signing. I am a big fan of Gurriel but if adding a Luis Castillo with Gurriel the main package I would be ok with it depending on the other prospects leaving. Many state we need another top of the rotation arm and only way to get a true ace is to give up young controllable assets and Gurriel has some of the highest value of trade assets. Just my thinking.
Very true
It will be LeMahieu or Springer – both simply will not happen. Could see them trading for Gray though.
Neither happens in my view.
I’ll play your game, Trebek. I’m a Yankee fan. Perfect off season for the Yankees:
Perfect off season would be if we could get healthy full seasons from Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge and have them both play in 150 games and hit 50 HR’s a piece, Gary Sanchez learns how to be an actual backstop and hits over .260 with 40 HR’s, reverse time and undo Domingo German being a domestic abuser and have him pitch like he did in 2019, get Trevor Bauer for less than $30M a season and have him pitch like he has the last two seasons, have all our relief pitchers throw for ERA’s under 3.00, then all Yankees fans can be optimistic about the upcoming few seasons.
And on and on it goes.
I’d also like to win both Mega Millions and Power Ball jackpots on Tuesday and Wednesday; walk away with around $320 Million Cash after taxes, I would be very optimistic about the next few years.
Are those rose colored glasses or ???
Pretty sure he made it clear he was saying it was as likely as him winning the lotto at the same time… unless you think he’s got a legit chance at walking away with $320M cash after taxes… hahaha
Morning Ducky,
All seemed completely reasonable (completely healthy seasons, Sanchez stopping that round thing, time travel) till you got to the taxes bit.
So I got working.
I’ve called Trevor Bauer and he’s agreed both sign and to pay the $750 in taxes.
Take care mate
Frank
Take your meds & go to bed, you’re in WAY over your head. In the immortal words of Bugs Bunny, “What a maroon!”
If things were still “FAR OUT” the braves would get Springer , DJLM and JTR to pair with D”Arnaud @ the plate
expect to be disappointed
Get DJLM locked up Blue Jays!
Snell?
Will their offer be better than the deal from Pittsburgh for Archer?
I doubt the Rays will be trading inside the division for anything less.
The Rays will more than likely deal Snell next offseason (if they do deal Snell).
Jays will and can spend money. I would offer Bauer 3 years 90 million. So his money comes off the books when Ryu’s does. (Plus correct me if I am wrong you can extend them a qualifying offer and get draft picks) Their payroll would still be reasonable and with the young controllable players they will be competitive for a significant time. Then I would sign Kim from Korea and have Aston Martin play for the big club. Sign Springer. Trade for Snell. Ryu, Bauer, Snell, Pearson and Ray is your rotation. Need a bullpen though. I am a Blue Jays homer. This is what I would do in OOTP.
Roughed Odor:
I agree that the Jays have the money to spend, and probably will. But IIRC both Bauer and Ryu have already been extended QOs, so they can no longer be offered one.
Castillo is staying in Cincinnati,
So this is just Passan’s speculation? Or have the Jays made an offer?
Well, he’s got a Canadian sounding name.
Does the southern boy want to play in Buffalo, then when Canada finally allows games, battle the customs issues every road trip? The Apple beckons.
He’s not a drug smuggler, so I don’t think he’ll be battling customs issues.
When did he win the MVP? Do these writers even check their work or do they know nothing about baseball?
Mvp candidate. He missed a word. Suck it up and enjoy the free content.
I think they meant to say MVP finalist because he was 3rd place this year
AL MVP *candidate?
One would think that was the missing word; but still
Anyone with common sense understood the point and moves on with their life
you complained for 8 comments
And you felt the need to respond to me, hmmmmmm
ah, the trap card.
Your parents probably change the conversation when your name gets brought up. Sad.
Did you come up with that all on your own?!? Fascinating stuff @cookmeister
Talk about sad
To tell you you’re acting like a dumb child
Boy what a win you got!
Sometimes I’ll eat a pudding cup like I’m Stone Cold drinking a beer.
Sad enough?
I’d rather talk about baseball!
Maybe try to have a pudding. Or some brew. Why bickering so much? Is this recess? Did I miss the bell? Glad I got extra puddings.
Chocolate or vanilla?
Or did you feel a bit wild and spring for the tapioca to get the texture?
MVP?
Connor, I’ve read that DJ is seeking 25M per; in other words, 5/125. Yanks don’t want to give that 5th year, nor do they want to go much higher than 20-22M per.
The Yanks should give him their high offer and a week and move on
Perfect take, he has reached his peak as it is. I’m pretty sure the Yankees realize that too or he’d already be signed
I’m pretty sure that you know nothing about any of it.
Are you trolling me now? Lmao
Because the Yankees ALWAYS wait for what they want right??? Who is their ace? When did he sign? And for how much more than anyone else was offering? Yeah, I know nothing of it
Tell me what exactly you “know” about what the Yankees “realize”. You can’t, because you don’t actually know anything of the sort.
Interesting you didn’t answer one question troll
I don’t have to answer any questions, because I’m not the one that made something up out of the thin blue air and then presented it as some sort of informed opinion on my part.
Well if you can muster the brain power to answer the questions I gave you; the answer to the question/statement you made to me would be had … amazing how that works, isn’t it?
The more I think about it the more I think the Yanks should just move on. 20 mil AAV would pay for one of Wong/LaStella/Hernandez plus at least 2 good relievers.
Look.
Plug one of those guys into 2B & the Yanks have a top 3 MLB offense.
Plug DJ LeMahieu into 2B & the Yanks have a…top 3 MLB offense.
That approach – which is taking advantage of this particular free agent market’s strengths – rebuilds the pen into a formidable strength & holds serve with the lineup.
At that point address the rotation. You’re in the same spot financially either way. This free agent market is not about Star Power or starting pitching. It’s really strong in other ways though. Take advantage of what’s there.
Ya know?
Very well said @Ducky
Ducky Buckin Fent:
I agree. I think the Yankees need pitching more than anything else. A lower-cost alternative at 2B, shifting resources to acquire pitching is what they need. Unfortunately, the FA pitching market is pretty scant. I’m thinking they need to trade for Castillo. He won’t be cheap, they’ll have to give up some talent, but I see them regressing as a team if they don’t find some pitching. If not Castillo, then maybe Snell, but that would also cost them big time.
Middle infield in general, @tad2b13 –
Can be second or SS. Gleyber play’s whichever. Ya know? There are several options that’ll put up ~ 3 WAR that’ll sign for under 10 mil AAV. Get one of those. Dive into the bullpen market. Lots of really good arms available for ~ 5 mil AAV. Way better use of treasure.
Re/ Castillo & Snell
That is exactly what the Yankees should be trying to do with the rotation. Or, at least one of the things. I don’t know how they’d match up in a trade though. Which is the biggest problem. Plus philosophically Cashman is super value conscious. Tough for me to see him swinging a trade like that.
But put me down for, “yes”.
Trades for Snell or Castillo start with Jasson Dominguez. Just start with him. Are you okay with that?
It’s some wild game of poker isn’t it?
For sure the trade starts with Dominguez. I’m still not convinced the Yanks have enough after that even.
Castillo seems more realistic to me than does Snell. But – yeah – it’d have to be Schmidt next. Not sure what the Reds would want after that, but I think a player or two more is realistic.
I’m not good at putting specific stuff like that together. I fully understand – however – that the cost would hurt.
I agree with the Yankees trading for a starter like Castillo, but the Rays aren;t trading with the Yankees.. The Yankees starters are rated 5th Fangraphs right now, they willl sign one starter or trade for one.
You’ve heard me say this before, ink Didi, and grab an innings eater and a bullpen piece, and shift Gleyber to the keystone.
If Andujar was a better fielder, you could shift Urshela and Gleyber to SS and 2B and go get Bauer…
What’s DJ gonna do without that friendly RF porch for 80 games a season?
He could play 3rd and hit .364 for the Braves
Lead the league in doubles?
It’s a mistake to give DJL five years as he goes into his age 33 season. I’m sure he’ll continue to be a great hitter for another couple of seasons but no one wants a $25M singles hitter late in his career. Will be smart if NY decides to move on and goes after pitching instead.
No it won’t.
Yankees would be stupid to pay this man; rotation is god awful after Cole … nothing more to say
There’s actually far more to say.
No there isn’t … no pitching, bloated contracts (especially Stanton) … injury prone players … Yankees have far bigger concerns than DJL unfortunately
Don’t stop now, we need more of you’re insight
Here’s some insight for you, we need DJL like we need another imbecile on here who couldn’t spell baseball if we spotted you the base AND the ball. Why don’t you & DJ both take a walk.
That depends on whether the Yankees think their WS window is within three years. No one in their right mind believes his fourth/fifth year will provide the value matching his salary. His people are rightfully posturing. DJL will eventually sign for four years + 1 year vesting option.
The thing is, he’s worth $30M/yr on a 2 year contract. You pay him $20M/yr over 5 instead as a sort of financing to spread the cost, and any production you get in the tail years is a bonus.
Yea, a long term contract for a player that age is very dumb.
Except with the way the luxury tax works, based on AAV, so spreading it out potentially prevents a penalty. One reason why the Phillies signed Bryce to 13 years & the Dodgers did 12 for Mookie.
I don’t know who the Yankees are looking for to fill out their rotation, but they could use a catcher (JTR ?), Trade Sanchez for some mid rotation starter and sign a top FA pitcher (Bauer). JT’s production would help replace DJ’s production but improve the team by giving them good defense behind the plate. They can hope Andujar can get back to where he was, or find someone else for third or second. Or sign a shortstop and move Gleyber to second.Reunion with DD.?
Didi
Not a yankee fan but it would stun me if their priority isn’t the rotation; unless they plan on resigning DJL and filling out the rotation with flyers on the likes of Kluber and Paxton, et al. Which would not be wise
EasternLeagueVeteran:
If the Yankees want to get below the CBT threshold, as they’ve stated, they can’t afford JTR. Neither can they afford Bauer. And with the lack of SPs available, no team is going to give them a mid-rotation arm for Sanchez. Signing LeMahieu sounds like the most they’re financially able to do, and they may be able to pull that off if the Jays don’t want to outbid them. But, no way that other stuff happens.
Good point, they would need to swing a trade for a cheap pitcher like Castillo; Frazier and others for him (no clue who they have on the farm)
Sanchez’ value is at an all-time low. Not many teams can afford to trade a 3/4 pitcher for a $5M+ gamble. Yankees will also have to eat some salary. They’re better off keeping him.
Sanchez has no trade value; most teams would have non-tendered him. DJM was far and away the best player on the team. He would be a huge loss.
Ok, I accept the critique. How much room do they have under the CBT?
Hard to say for certain with arb raises being more unpredictable this offseason.
Safe bet is 30-35 million give or take
yeah yeah yeah. he’ll be back in NYY in no time. and I say that as someone who dislikes them.
LeMahieu is a great hitter but this looks like an overpay + regression waiting to happen
100% agree
Most of the top 3-5 Players in FA are overpaid every year
True, but there are differences here. DJL is not the guy to put you over the top; he is 32ish and had his best season and a third of his career in ‘19 and ‘20 .. one has to wonder if it’s sustainable, and for how long. He’s not the game changer you need like Cole starting game 1 of the WS. No disrespect to DJL, he’s a fine player … but not what the Yankees need to put them ahead of the pack
Its the same with Bauer, He’s a 9 year career 3.8 ERA pitcher With 1 short great year what is the chance that he will pitch under a 2.5-3.0. not great!!
@James I agree, I’m not in love with Bauer either; if he can be had on a 1 year $30 (or so) mil deal then do it. It he has another CY caliber year then maybe give him the long term. Obviously not a popular opinion but I just don’t think he’s an ace… but he could prove me wrong
Yes i agree, BUT he doesnt have that many years left so i dont think long term is more than 2-3 years, And yes he could be an ACE on a few teams, but not many. Even on my Braves IMO HE would be 3rd in the rotation
regressing from being one of the top small handfull of players in baseball. even if he regresses, unless its by a lot, he’s still a very good hitter.
They still have a top tier offense without him; unless they get help in the rotation they are going nowhere. The jays and white Sox are coming strong ; with the tigers stock of young pitching they are a year or 2 away from becoming Cleveland 2.0 … I would assume Boston would become relevant again soon as well
i would actually go as far as to disagree entirely with the 1st point. NYY’s lineup is great if you assume good health, but basically everyone on that team has injury issues. DJ has been a steadying factor for that team over the past two years, which is wy ive argued he would have been the easy MVP choice in both 2019 and 2020 if you dont vote simply for the player that had the best year. DJ’s ability to be a healthy, consistent performer was crucial to NYY’s success over the past two years. add in the drop off from DJ to his likely replacement (Wade? Estrada?) and that’s a titanic loss.
@Darkside, very valid point. That rotation though… just screams out for help more than the offense does IMO
Maybe what the NYY’s need is better coaching/trainers to keep players from getting hurt. Just a thought
i mean yeah that would help, but that’s easier said then done.
I just wanted to throw this out there, But I think I’ve turned into a MLBTR Junkie. Maybe it was retirement
Not retired, but I am still an mlbtr junkie. If I had more time in my hands? Egad…but at least it’s baseball! Totally worth it!
The Jays have a scary good young core of offensive talent. But they really need some legitimate pitching. They have Ryu who I think is quietly one of the best pitchers in all of baseball — statistically year after year he puts up stellar numbers but never really gets the attention that a lot of the bigger names get — but beyond him they’re really just mediocre. Adding LeMahieu would indeed be a great steal, especially taking him away from their division rival Yankees. BUT if they’re going to spend that kind of money — why not pony up just a little bit more and make a play for Bauer instead. I think having a 1-2 punch of Bauer and Ryu along with their really solid young offensive core would make them a SERIOUSLY dangerous team in the East — in all of baseball — for that matter. Sure adding LeMahieu or Springer would be a massive boost to their offense as well… but I think if they were to add Bauer (or a comparable SP) — they’d be a legitimate WS contender. (Sure they’d still have a few holes here and there but who doesn’t) I just think that that 1-2 punch, like I said of Ryu and Bauer would be devastating in a postseason series.
Jeff you’re one of the few making sense. Jays should be all over Bauer and potentially dealing for an arm, but not at the expose of Gurriel. Too many people seem open to the idea of paying Springer to trade Gurriel. Jays have enough players to deal, and OF is not a pressing need.
I like Lemahieu. Not at 5 years. I don’t like beyond 3 years.
Bauer should be the target and the Jays aren’t hot on that idea for whatever reason I’m sure stems from Cleveland.
*expense of Gurriel.
I fully own thinking DJL was not going to be worth his yankee deal, but truly that park was a better fit for him than coors. Cheaper HRs
I still think some teams are going to be disappointed by the DJL they sign, depending on the park
5 years at $20 million per is a lot of money for a player who would be 37 at the end of the deal. Not sure he gets that from anyone. 3 yrs at $75 million might be more reasonable, a higher AAV but with out the years.
Hey Rsox, What people seem to miss is that teams will fork over the dollars and term, just look at what the Twins did signing Donaldson at age 34 to a 4 year deal worth 92 Million. this is a guy who has struggled with injuries for at least 3 seasons prior to that signing
Doesn’t mean the Twins were right to give him the contract. Nor is the Donaldson signing a strong argument to justify 5-years and $100+ mil for Lemahieu.
Guest I am not making an argument for or against or saying the Twins were right, I am just saying teams do sign contracts for older players this one who was injury prone proves that point, so teams are very likely to offer the dollars and term for a player who is 2 years younger than Donaldson was when he got his contract
Right. I understand what you’re saying. Here’s where I see an issue; at some point Lemahieu will have to DH. Let’s assume 2023. Will Teoscar still be on the team? What do you do with Vlad and Tellez?
If DH was an open slot with a rotation of guys I’d say Lemahieu is more intriguing for the Jays. Signing Lemahieu means two of the three will have to go in two years to open 1B/DH for DJ.
Guest, there is nothing to indicate that Tellez will even be with the team at the end of 2020, and guess what at 35 Donaldson is not relegated to being the DH, what says Le Mahieu 3 years into his contract can not play the field and needs to be a DH only player
I hate to be the one to tell you this, but the 2020 season is over and Tellez is still on the Blue Jays. But feel free to tell us what a Tellez trade will garner for the Blue Jays.
Donaldson, if Cruz is not signed, will be doing more DH’ing over the next three years. You can guarantee that IF Cruz is not signed. That is why the Twins gave him the extra year over other suitors, thinking Cruz could be done in 2020. Cruz isn’t slowing down and now they have tough decisions to make.
Lemahieu at 35 will have to DH and play 1B at 35. Doubtful he will stay at 2B. You want to create a logjam similar to 2017 when the Jays signed Morales, Pearce and re-signed Bautista?
You really ask “what says Lemahieu 3 years into his contract can not play the field”? First, write better. Second, I also said 1B. Third, you did not answer the Vlad or Teoscar question. Fourth, if you are a Jays fan which translates into a baseball fan in-general you’d be thinking about the window the next 3-4 years. Where people line up on the field matters and should be thought out thoroughly before taking on a guy who’s prime is closing.
Anyone who actually thinks DJL is going to sign with the Blue Jays lacks any brain function. He ain’t going to Canada. Lol…. stop it.
Woodlawn are you the poster who argued last off season that there was no way Ryu would sign North of the border? How did that prediction work out for you??
Blue Jays can have him if theyre willing to pay his crazy asking price of 5 for 125
Well thanks yanks02026, we will take him for 5 for 100 and put him at 3rd
I like DJ but they need pitching everywhere and they can sign Didi for much cheaper. The real trouble is that even if they sign Lemahieu, Judge and Stanton will never give them another healthy season so what does it really matter? They’re stuck with Stanton for like ever and I bet they end up signing Judge to a huge deal and then watch him get hurt year after year after year. The two “best” hitters on the team who never seem to play. Pitching, pitching, and pitching I like Frazier a lot this year and Torres will hopefully bounce back they need to fill in the holes in the lineup cheaply and spend the real money on the mound.
There is no reason the Jays can not sign Le Mahieu and also sign a pitcher Though Free Agency, then add another pitcher through a trade. The Jays can easily spend 80 Mil on new contracts in 2020 and still be well below the tax threshold
Plot twist, signs with the Braves
Toronto are serious players I can see them landing DJ & Tanaka. The Yankees will not go beyond 4 years and reports out of NY is his agent is seeking 5 years/$125 million I can see the Yankees final offer 4 years/$92 million.
Yankees have a lot of holes even if DJ signs the uncertainty with Torres at Shortstop, Gio’s elbow, Hicks Elbow, Stanton’s Health, Judge’s Health, No certainty beyond Cole as innings limits will be done on Montgomery, Severino, Domingo German, Garcia they have their work cut out for them I still think in the end with DJ is the Yankees know he will be 33 years old he has had a great two years with them at a bargain price but again are you going to pay on past accomplishments or players his age regressing?
This is why the Yankees need to go out and get Lindor you replace him with DJ in age, speed, defense, switch-hitter and work out a deal that is beneficial to both. and either resign Tanaka or Odorizzi since they will have that extra cash if they dont resign DJ;
You pair up Lindor, Gio & Torres for years to come the defense becomes stronger
Agreed. Yanks would be better served going after Lindor and pitching. Then throw money at a SS a year from now if they don’t lock up Lindor.
Leave the Skankees now!!! They’re going nowhere real fast. An absurd payroll with injury riddled players. Time to move on to a promising chance at a championship in Toronto
Going nowhere guess you have been saying that for what 20+ years? Yankees have abundance of talent still yes they have question marks like all teams when it comes to health but the Yankees will always hover over .500 and be a contender year in and year out something many teams have not been able to say in any sport.
On a side note i wish to thank Tim for adding the monthly payment option so that i could help out this amazing site!!!!!
Regardless of who signs who, the real winners may be the teams who end up with their ‘second’ options
5/85 would be a generous walk away offer and tell agent you are respectfully pivoting elsewhere if they want to take a chance on squeezing nyy. Don’t get strung along.
That INF could hit 130+ HRs and that’s ridiculous. Fingers crossed.
Interesting….The debate seems to be whether the Blue Jays want and have the money to create an offer DJL can’t refuse….and they very well may….however, from the players side, there are tax implications that affect the “actual” salary DJL would actually earn given the Canadian tax rates and how those affect the total offer the Blue Jays would make. That may very well, have a positive affect on how the Yankees future and eventual offer for his services actually plays out……Just Saying!
Rocky7, Very little difference in the tax rate between being a Yankee and a Blue Jay, Being a Yankee you are looking at Federal, State and City taxes. Being a Blue Jay you are looking at federal and Provincial taxes only on games played in Canada meaning 81 games. Players are paid in US Dollars while playing for a Canadian team, the difference in Canadian and US federal tax is 37% for Canadian and 33 % for US federal taxes, Meanwhile the City of New York taxes the players at 8.9% the 3rd or 4th highest of all American cities with LA having the highest city tax
I feel like the Blue Jays are in danger of being that team, a la the Padres of the mid 2010’s, the Phillies of two years ago, the Reds last year, who shoot their wad too early and spend in free agency in an attempt to short cut when patience and analytics would be better served towards a winning plan. If they sign half the players rumored, they’ll be the next team “looking to shed payroll” after a disappointing season.
A lot of interesting takes on why the current AL batting champ isn’t worth Jacoby Ellsbury money to the Yankees (Ellsbury is getting $26 million to go away). And by “interesting” of course I mean not interesting at all.
yanks need, DJ, a SS, and 3 legit SPs (not 4/5s- we have that in abundance). Bonus round is some LH bats and guys who make contact.
Its Cash’s job to get it done. I’m guessing not, but let’s see.
This is where the Yankees are currently at in terms of either addition by subtraction if you add DJ you have no addition to the pitching end and sub-par defense from Torres at Shortstop, however don’t sign DJ & sign from Didi, Simmons or Trade for Lindor or Correa you move Torres to 2nd base and now you can add to the pitching via trade or under the Radar signing.
Yankees best bet is letting DJ walk, look for value in terms of what Luke can bring you or wheel you in while his stock is high & try and go after either Joc Pederson or Jackie Bradley JR & starting pitching via free agency or trades.
Right now they have immovable parts in Hicks, Stanton, Andjuar, Sanchez if they dont sign DJ then Cashman is going to have to be creative and eat some contracts in order to fulfill the roster with more balance somehow.
Creative? that is part of Cashman’s problem. Funny how all the other big market teams have parades isn’t it….
All your points above are problems created by cashman, and it all starts with crappy SP. that forces him to spend more on the pen than 7 teams spend on their entire payroll. That pen is burnt by July. so next step is try and outhit everyone. great, when you hit 30% of your HRs against Baltimore, you tend to hit very few in October. How about the D?
Right now the only immovable part is Cashman and he is the problem.
This is the part I don’t understand. Without DJLM the past two years the Yankees are the Boston Red Sox. How can their “best bet” possibly be letting the best hitter in the AL, and a mentor to Frazier and other young players, walk (to a division rival) and “look for value” by trading Voit (who is the definition of value) and replace them with Jackie Bradley JR???? This isn’t a team in a rebuild. They were one run from defeating a really good Rays team. The “best bet” is to keep the roster healthy and beat the tar out of the rest of the AL.
the need DJ. I never said otherwise. in fact my opening sentence is “yanks need DJ” ( i didnt mean Jeter but I would take him back in a NY minute).
They never keep their roster healthy so assume that is not likely to happen. In all likelihood the Rays did the yanks a favor as the stros would have beat em,
The Yanks need much better SP and better contact bats. that is why they lose these series all the time. They won’t win close ones. those are just facts.
Look i grew up in the and bleed pinstripes, I just have zero confidence in Cashman- and the track record of 1 WS in 15 plus years with the top resources in the game for payroll, development, scouting, coaches, facilities and analytics just proves my point.
Toronto was one game behind the Yankees in a season where no one was ravaged with injuries like the Yankees. Signing DJ is not going to put them over the top.
While I do not think DJLM will be on Toronto in 2021, taking the Yankees best hitter over the past two years, and adding a gold glove second baseman would definitely give them that boost to be competitive with the Yankees and Tampa Bay. It would make for an interesting American League East.
Oh sure golden, the Jays did not have any injuries? Anderson, Hernandez, Giles, Bichette to name just a few Jays who missed time in 2020
Tellez
I believe Toronto’s pursuit of DJ isnt serious and theyre only trying to get NY to outbid themselves. Who knows where most of these rumours come from.
Management has always been wise with their money, I dont think theyre going to blow it on Springer or DJ. I think its just all fluff. No reason why they have to be super aggressive this off season.
If I had to bet at this date, I’d bet that Steve Cohen tells Alderson to bring DJ to Flushing and he outbids the Yankees.
I love DJ LeMahieu and I was firmly in the “sign him at all costs” camp, but now I think the Yankees need to move on and build a championship roster.
If they only have, as we hear and read, about $30 million to spend in order to stay under the luxury tax threshold, then sign DD to play SS and provide some lefty pop to the lineup. I figure about $12 million will do the trick.
Then I would get Brad Hand to deepen the bullpen, for about $8 million.
That would leave just about enough to trade for Blake Snell to fill the #2 starter role. I would propose Miguel Andujar, Luis Gil, and Oswald Peraza.
At this date, I strongly suspect that the Yankees’ repeated insistence that re-signing DJ is their first priority is just PR smoke. I don’t think Hal has any intention of spending for LeMahieu unless Cashman can get him at a deep discount, which DJ is not going to give.
DJ isn’t stupid. He said he wants to compete for a ring. He sees the Yankees rolling the dice on a mostly untested group of fledgling pitchers, a rotation that’s weaker right now than the one that got knocked out of the playoffs by the Rays. Besides not being fool enough to give the Yankees a discount on the strength of a hope of competing in a World Series, if he gets a comparable offer from the Dodgers, who just won one, why would he sign with the Yankees for less money?
I suspect that the Yankees’ rhetoric is just posturing so they can tell the fans: “Hey, we tried.” That being the case, they’d better make a deal for a genuine shortstop fast unless they think Gleyber’s shoddy defense will drastically improve. The best thing Cashman could do is to make a deal to acquire Trevor Story if at all possible. The worst thing he could do is wait until the best options are off the board.
See that 10 million they are gonna waste on Gardner>? Give it to DJ and sign him.
90 million for 4 gets it done.
Haven’t checked in on these duds in a bit. Let me know when they sign Gardner for 7 million and call it a off season.