Corey Seager is a Ranger. Max Scherzer is a Met. Now what for Dodgers?

Editor’s note: This is the Monday, Nov. 29 variation of the Inside the Dodgers newsletter from newsman J.P. Hoornstra. To person the newsletter successful your inbox, sign up here.

The Dodgers mislaid 2 of their champion players to escaped bureau Monday. That’s ne'er fun.

The departures of pitcher Max Scherzer (to the New York Mets) and shortstop Corey Seager (to the Texas Rangers) are likewise devastating successful presumption of endowment lost, but the consequences of each are precise different. With 1 notable objection – we’ll get to him aboriginal – the Dodgers nether Andrew Friedman thin to fare good successful escaped agency. Their non-moves are often conscionable arsenic omniscient arsenic their moves. But the non-moves thin to sting, careless of their wisdom, possibly nary much than letting a homegrown prima specified arsenic Seager walk. Let’s commencement there.

With Seager, the question wasn’t arsenic elemental arsenic whether the Dodgers could perpetrate an mean of $32.5 cardinal per twelvemonth to 1 subordinate for the adjacent 10 years and expect to contend for a World Series annually. The Dodgers might person needed a larger outlay to vie with Texas connected a declaration of that size. Whatever the fig was, a fewer evident reasons leap retired arsenic to wherefore the Dodgers mightiness person chosen not to lucifer the Rangers’ last offer:

• The Dodgers already person an All-Star shortstop nether declaration for 2022 successful Trea Turner. His accomplishment acceptable differs from Seager’s successful a fewer regards, but they play the aforesaid position. The Rangers haven’t had overmuch success employing offensively susceptible shortstops since their past World Series appearance, truthful they plausibly needed to spell extracurricular the enactment to find one. The Dodgers did not.

• Seager’s defence astatine shortstop has been plaintive for a fewer years now. He manages to compensate for below-average scope with a beardown limb and consistency connected the regular plays. Over the adjacent 10 years, however, his scope volition diminish. He wasn’t a versatile defender to statesman with. If Seager becomes a country infielder oregon DH for astir of the adjacent decade, helium mightiness not beryllium worthy the money.

• Seager reportedly received a constricted no-trade clause arsenic portion of his contract. The specifics of these clauses tin alteration widely, but it could person been a imaginable sticking constituent successful negotiations.

For the “none of this matters – it’s Corey Seager!” crowd, there’s this: Among shortstops, only the San Diego Padres’ Fernando Tatís Jr. has been a amended hitter by WRC+ since Seager debuted successful 2015. His 2020 postseason performance was an all-time masterpiece, and it led the Dodgers to their archetypal World Series title since 1988. If you tin acceptable speech the wounded history, and the deficiency of a wide presumption going forward, there’s a large statement to beryllium made that Seager should beryllium a Dodger for life.

Those are a mates of large “ifs,” peculiarly erstwhile gambling $325 cardinal oregon much connected 1 player. The Dodgers efficaciously chose a antithetic acceptable of smaller gambles: that Turner’s antiaircraft worth astatine shortstop tin assistance offset what Seager added to the lineup; that their different left-handed hitters (Max Muncy, Cody Bellinger, Edwin Rios, Gavin Lux, etc.) volition not disappoint successful 2022 and beyond; that they won’t tally into Seager successful the postseason anytime soon. The past 1 seems safe, astatine least.

My archetypal thought aft Scherzer signed with the Mets acrophobic Trevor Bauer. Scherzer’s record-setting 3-year, $130 cardinal contract is intertwined with Bauer’s three-year, $102 cardinal woody with the Dodgers similar a celtic knot.

Bauer made conscionable 17 starts successful a Dodger azygous past play earlier helium was placed connected administrative leave by Major League Baseball. The possibilities for his aboriginal successful MLB are many. All we cognize is that the Dodgers beryllium Bauer $32 cardinal adjacent twelvemonth and apt different $32 million successful 2023, assuming helium opts into the last twelvemonth of his contract. Scherzer chose a akin short-term woody for adjacent much money, which delighted some Bauer and his agent today.

With nary clarity connected Bauer’s presumption from the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office (or MLB, which has the powerfulness to suspend him) the Dodgers could not simply re-route the $64 cardinal they beryllium Bauer to Scherzer’s slope account. Among the myriad possibilities is that Bauer pitches each of the adjacent 2 years and delivers connected the worth his declaration demands. But would that beryllium worthy the backlash from fans who were irked by the details of Bauer’s intersexual history? Would it marque fans hide the accidental outgo of letting Scherzer go?

A much important question for the future: who is successful the Dodgers’ 2022 rotation different than Walker Buehler, Julio Urías and Tony Gonsolin? Andrew Heaney and David Price are the evident answers from the extent chart, but what is existent connected Nov. 29 seldom carries implicit to the pursuing outpouring (or whenever adjacent play begins). Knowing that either Scherzer oregon Bauer would inhabit 1 spot shouldn’t person been excessively overmuch to inquire by Dec. 1, but present we are.

Marcus Stroman and Carlos Rodon are arguably the champion starting pitchers left successful a rapidly shrinking escaped cause market. The Dodgers mightiness besides effort to pry a starter from a rebuilding team. The Cincinnati Reds reportedly discussed Sonny Gray and Luis Castillo with the Dodgers. The Oakland A’s person Chris Bassitt, Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas as imaginable targets. I’ve heard Clayton Kershaw is inactive retired there, too.

Reimagining the shortstop presumption isn’t arsenic difficult. It’s harmless to pencil Turner into the Dodgers’ adjacent Opening Day lineup. But it’s unclear however the beforehand bureau imagines the left-handed-hitting information of the lineup without Seager. Bellinger finished October strong. Muncy did not; contiguous he revealed helium has a torn UCL successful his elbow. Neither did Lux (0 for 5 successful the NLCS) oregon Rios, who did not play aft May 4. That’s a batch of question marks, and not a batch of clip to resoluteness them earlier the Collective Bargaining Agreement expires Wednesday night.

The flurry of escaped cause enactment makes a lockout look each the much inevitable. Scherzer and Marcus Semien are 2 of the 4 players connected the MLBPA’s enforcement subcommittee. If the Dec. 1 deadline to motion a declaration nether the existent CBA presumption were a brushed one, they ought to know. It often takes a time oregon 2 for a subordinate to instrumentality and walk a physical, a prerequisite for a declaration to go authoritative – hence the unreserved contiguous to bushed Wednesday’s 8:59 p.m. PT deadline. If you were rooting for the Dodgers to beryllium large players anterior to the lockout, today’s quality is an unequivocal loss. If you were consenting to beryllium diligent to larn however the Dodgers would upgrade their 106-win roster, the shot gods shall trial you.

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