Going out of season, there were many similarities between the two biggest free agents, Carlos Correa And the Cory Seeger. Both were dropping out of free agency at age 27 and coming off stellar platform seasons. Seager, along with agent Scott Boras, took a $325 million, ten-year contract from Rangers before closing. However, he did not sign Correa before freezing the transactions, then appointed Boras Corporation to represent him in January. Once the lockdown is lifted, his constant search for a hold will be one of the most important events to follow. Joel Sherman from The New York Post Take a look at some of the options, including Dodgers, Yankees, Blue Jays, Tigers, and Cubs, while Ken Rosenthal And the Corey Brook from AthleteSee the fit with the Red Sox and Mariners, respectively.
Of course, the Dodgers have had Seager as their short pit stop in recent years and have seen him leave for the Rangers. The expectation was that they were comfortable enough with this loss because they could count on it Tria Turner To take charge in a nutshell. If the Dodgers should then switch to Correa, that would likely involve Turner moving to second base, just as he did when he and Seager were on the roster together after being snatched from the Nationals at the trade deadline last year. With Turner only a year away from free agency, signing a long-term deal with Correa could be a way to proactively address the short-term void one year before it is absolutely necessary. This scenario appears to have already been considered by the Copper Dodgers, with Sherman reporting that they offered Seager a $275 million deal before he signed with Rangers. However, he also points out that it may not be as simple as replacing Correa with Seager, as Correa’s role in the Astros signals-stealing scandal may not sit well with Dodgers fans, as they were previously defeated by that now-infamous team at the 2017 World Championships.
This same issue exists with another reported suitor, the Yankees, who were cut by the Astros at the 2017 ALCS. But Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman did previously mentioned That fan reaction “Will not enter my account now.” where Jaleber Torres Moved to second base last year, the Yankees were expected to be major players in this year’s shortstop market. However, they may be willing to avoid big push, preferring to target a short term temporary option to hold the position until it is taken over by a potential customer, either Oswald Peraza or Anthony Volpi. It is also possible that this is just a position for negotiating purposes and that the club may emerge as a true suitor to Korea. MLB’s John Heyman Tweets They checked in with Korea before closing, but they seem to prefer Seager. Since Korea rose I’m looking for a contract A little higher than what Seager eventually got, it could be tough for a deal to come together.
Blue Jays have a less obvious need for Correa, since there are Bo Bechet Briefly. Sherman sees the club could sign Correa and then bump Pichet into second or third place, but then reduces the likelihood of a contract close to Correa’s asking price. Given the fact that they were In the mix for Seager Before closing, the possibility cannot be completely ruled out. The case of signal theft is clearly not a problem for Jays, as they are already caught George Springer, Correa’s fellow in Houston. But even if they have payroll to make a big payment after closing, they may use it for that make run in Freddy Freeman While that.
The Tigers have always been considered a speculative fit for Korea, given the fact that their manager is AJ Hinch, who previously ran Correa in Houston. However, they have already made a large investment in a short time upon signing Javier Baez before closing. Although Baez played some second base with the Mets last year with respect Francisco Lindor And they could theoretically do the same again, it would still be shocking to see them multiply in such an aggressive manner. Sherman also speculates that the cubs could be a black horse here. The club focused mainly on demolishing last year, eliminating most of the core pieces from the previous competition window, including Baez, Chris Bryant And the Anthony Rizzo. Since the Offseason program started, they have been surprisingly active in making and creating extras Marcus StrowmanAnd the Ian Gomez And the Valley Miley. However, these players have all been brought in with short-term commitments, and it seems like a focus on the type of extended deal that would be required to sign for Korea seems unlikely at this point.
As for the Red Sox, Rosenthal sets up a scenario where Correa takes over as their stopping point since his defense is much higher than his. Xander Bogarts, which can be moved to the second base. However, he also points out that because the spring training layoff is shortened, there will be less time for Bogarts to develop his skills in a new position than he would in a normal year, making the plan too awkward for a successful implementation. After this season, the Bogaerts can opt out of the three years and $60 million that will remain on his contract, something he seems likely to do if he has another healthy and productive season. Signing Correa may now be a way for Boston to preemptively replace Bogarts, but as Rosenthal points out, the club has not signed a free agent contract greater than $14 million since Chaim Bloom became the club’s chief baseball official. Dropping $300 million suddenly on the table would be a major shift in strategy. However, due to this he avoided large commitments, the club’s salary schedule in the future is rather empty. If Bogarts does quit after this season, he will leave chris sel As the only serious commitment on the books.
As for the Mariners, Brock doesn’t think there’s likely to be a match here. However, he notes that if Correa is interested in going to Seattle, they have the money to make it happen. The club’s salary for the year is currently around $87 million, an estimate Jason Martinez at Roster Resource. From 2015 to 2019, the club’s annual budget hovered in the $120-160 million range, per Crib Baseball Contracts. That leaves plenty of room to breathe, if the club is willing to rise to those spending levels again in an effort to build on last year’s 90-win campaign. Baseball Operations Team Leader Jerry Diputo previously mentioned The club will not replace him JB Crawford As the team’s short stopping point, but it’s hard to imagine the strategy is so etched in stone that they wouldn’t consider adding a talent like Correa if the stars were aligned with them to do so.
There are obviously many ways the Korea market could play out once the lockdown is over. With transactions and contract negotiations on hold, we can’t really tell what either side’s intentions are until this ice breaks and the dominos start falling again. Given the compressed schedule that will eventually be in place between the signing of the new CBA agreement and the start of the season, this all has to be done in an expedited fashion. With Boras also representing many notable free agents such as Bryant, Nick CastellanosAnd the Michael KonfortoAnd the Carlos Rodon And what’s more, these numbers just make the situation even crazier.