As he continues his dominance in the 2019 postseason, Geritt Cole has fans everywhere wondering if the Dodgers front office might consider going against their set-imposed rule of not giving out a long term, high-priced salary.
Regardless of how well Cole did this season, I don’t believe that the Dodgers would do that. While they may offer him a higher AAV on the three to four-year scale, they most likely won’t be in talks for a seven to eight-year deal. Ken Rosenthal put out an article this morning describing how it may just be the team that goes to eight years that finally nabs the seemingly unstoppable starter.
However, there was another story posted early this afternoon that has piqued Dodger fans’ interest. Jon Morosi published an article stating that the Dodgers will be pursuing a trade with the Cleveland Indians for shortstop Francisco Lindor.
In the article, he writes that the Dodgers front office is seemingly open to a bigger shake up than past off seasons. Since the Dodgers have mostly remained the same over the last few years and still have not been able to get that World Series win, I think such a shake up would be a good thing.
There is no doubt that Lindor would bring a new spark to this Dodgers team. Along with having one of the best smiles in all of baseball, the charismatic shortstop has been an All-Star each of his last four seasons. A switch-hitter, he consistently bats around .285 on the season, hit 32 homers last year, and is always a threat to steal. His personality and steady play would instantly make the fans who don’t already want him to come to Los Angeles excited about a trade.
So what do the Dodgers do with home-grown Corey Seager if such a trade was to happen? The most likely scenario is that they would trade him, perhaps to the Indians or perhaps to another team. Or, they could keep him and shift him to third, moving Justin Turner to first.
As stated in Morosi’s story, Seager swung at the most pitches of any other Dodger last season and has spent a bunch of his career on the injured list. He hit .272 on the season with 19 home runs and 44 doubles, and he had a hot September. But once the playoffs started, he only had three hits in 20 at bats.
Both Lindor and Seager are 25, and will be eligible for arbitration after the 2021 season. Lindor will command a higher pay grade, possibly double that of Seager’s.
Of course, we are not yet into November, and there is a long way to go before the Hot Stove really heats up. The Dodgers, as a team, like to keep their dealings pretty quiet, so there is probably little smoke to this fire. However, I would put this at a much greater chance of happening than Cole becoming a Dodger. I, for one, am excited to see exactly what shake-ups this winter holds.
Think Blue Planning Committee 
Interesting but why is everyone moving Turner to first lets leave Muncy at first and move Turner to second. Muncy did a commendable job at second but Turner I think would be a upgrade from Muncy.
I think Seager could do a good job at third and Lindor would be a great addition.
Does anyone know why Muncy is not looking for big money is he under control to free agency?
LikeLike
Dodgers have three years of control over Muncy before he hits free agency. Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but I think Turner’s metrics at second are pretty awful. Definitely not as good as Muncy’s.
If we’re going to try to play Lindor, Lux, Muncy and JT at the same time, we’ll probably have to try to move Seager in a trade. No idea what Corey would bring in a trade, but if we have Lindor, maybe we could package Seager and Stripling and get Bryant from the Cubs. He’s a right handed power bat and can play left field. Then we trade Joc and try to move Pollock. I also wouldn’t be anxious to include Gray in a deal for two years of Lindor, but that’s just me.
LikeLike
Sorry, that reference to Gray was because Morosi mentioned Gray, Ruiz and Downs in a potential Lindor deal.
LikeLike
Hey Jeff the last time I saw Turner play second was with the Mets.
LikeLike
The first spring training he was here they gave him a lot of time at second base.
That’s why they moved him to third. 🙂
JT has great reactions but his range has been diminished over the years. You need good range to play second.
LikeLike
The last time I saw Turner play 2B, was This year, every time They put the shift on against a lefty pull hitter.
LikeLike
Because left handed Lux plays second Larry. Muncy goes to left, Pederson goes to Baltimore for Means. We have an all left handed outfield that will crush left handed pitching and we get a left handed starter that when left in the rotation means nothing is left on the table. It’s the right thing to do.
LikeLike
Since when does Muncy play outfield???
LikeLike
Since a couple of us over here decided he’s athletic enough to do a decent job out there. You probably didn’t realize it Larry, but we’re paid advisors to Friedman and Doc. Actually I phoned Doc during game 5 of the Nats series and told him Kelly had at least four good innings in him. They listen to everything we say.
LikeLiked by 1 person
He played lf and RF with Oakland and he was out in lf for us. By the sabermetrics his range was average. He just needs to catch 5,000 fly balls between now and opening day and he’ll be fine. Easy peasy fungo freely. It’s easier than second base.
LikeLike
Trade muncy. Dead weight.
LikeLike
Why would you trade Muncy when he’s the only one who consistently produced in the playoffs. I think he’s come to mean a lot to this team in 2 short years
LikeLiked by 1 person
You missed Turner Andy. JT is a .310 hitter in post season play. He has really only had 2 playoff series where he was not good at all. One was the 2017 WS against the Stros, and the other was the NLCS loss to the Cubs in 2016. But otherwise he rakes. And he has done it usually every year. He only got into 2 games the first year he was in LA.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re right Bear. I was just more making the point that he’s on the only ones that produced and not “dead weight”
LikeLiked by 1 person
By the way Andy, Over all in the post season Max is only hitting .217. in 21 games. He does have 6 homers and 13 ribbies over that time. Bellinger on the other hand is a .178 hitter in 36 games. He has 4 homers, and 13 RBI’s in the playoffs. Just think if he was anywhere close to what he did in the regular season. He would be series MVP. In the 2018 NLCS against the Brewers, he was the MVP despite hitting only .200
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bellinger – dead weight. Trade him.
LikeLike
Uh, you might want to rethink that statement Albert. .251 BA, 35 homers, 3rd on the team and 98 ribbies. Pederson hit one more homer than Max, but drove in 24 less runs. Muncy is close to a 6 WAR player. Only guy higher was Bellinger. Joc was 3.3, Plus Muncy played 3 different positions during the season. Most at second and first. Muncy is definitely NOT DEAD WEIGHT.
LikeLike
Dead weight?
How about Muncy and a young arm (White/Alvarez) for Lindor. Cleveland gets a reliable DH that can actually help out in the field and a young starter for a guy that’s going to stretch their payroll before leaving. We get an All Star shortstop. It’s almost equal WAR trade too. Muncy actually had more WAR this year, so it works for both teams.
LikeLike
Lost edit capability again (am logged in…. don’t know why this happens) so I have to add this to the above:
realistically Cleveland will likely be more interested in a young, team controlled future star, Seager is on the same FA path as Lindor, so I’m thinking Lux, Verdugo or May, Muncy is a FA in ‘23. The thing that stops me from doing any of those guys is the fact Lindor is a free agent after ‘21. If he could be extended, I’d do it. I don’t know if he would do that.
LikeLike
If the Indians would take Muncy even up for Lindor that’s one thing but Alvarez has absolutely no trade value at this point and White has been so inconsistent (mostly pretty bad) that he barely has any value either.
If AF calls and offers Muncy and a pitcher, he’s going to hear names of pitchers that would be much harder to give up than those two.
Lindor is Cleveland’s most popular player. Trading him with two years of control left is going to make Indians fans very unhappy, so they would have to ask for an awful lot if they don’t want to have a riot on their hands.
One last thing for Albert, if you think Muncy is “dead weight” I would suggest that maybe you should get a new scale.
LikeLike
Common sense says you’re probably right, so naturally I’ll disagree. I look at Alvarez and I see 246 Ks in 210 innings pitched. He’ll be 24 next March, so there is still time. Somebody can fix him. And Mitchell White is the #9 prospect in one of the best systems in baseball. Anthopoulus thought the guy had #1 stuff. He should know good stuff when he sees it.
That said, you are right about cleavelund fans. They want somebody that will help them forget Lindor. How about Verdugo?
LikeLike
Common sense? My sense is extraordinary and not to be quibbled with.
Both Alvarez and White could become something eventually but they have very little trade value at this moment (the moment of the trade). Alvarez has a lifetime K/BB ratio of about 2:1, not very good and a lifetime WHIP of over 1.40, pretty awful. And a reputation for being a head case. White has great potential but injuries seem to keep getting in the way of that. You mentioned Verdugo. Are you saying Verdugo and Muncy for 2 years of Lindor? I think that’s too much.
LikeLike
Verdugo AND Muncy? No. I’m just asking if Verdugo and a bag of balls would be enough. The fact that Lindor is a free agent in two years lowers his value.
“My sense is extraordinary and not to be quibbled with.” I see your point and raise you a quiddity – if you take the W out of his WHIP, his HIP is 0.840. It’s a question of command. That can be fixed. As for being a head case, just give him some mushrooms. Worked for me and my crazy friends.
LikeLike
Since you’ve been fixed and Alvarez hasn’t, we’re going to include you in the trade. You’ll be a great clubhouse presence in Cleveland.
I’m thinking Verdugo and a bag of balls wouldn’t be enough to satisfy the Indians. On the other hand I’d like to keep him around because he’s the only position player we have who exhibits emotion on a regular basis. I think every team needs a guy like that.
JT, Muncy, Seager, Lux, Pollock, Belli, Smith – all stand up guys who play their hearts out every day, but every one of them is very low key. We need Verdugo in the mix.
LikeLike
I’ve been to cleavelund. No thanks. 1972. I can still remember the smell. Maybe it’s better now.
There will be more Lindor talk. There will be more Seager talk. Be ready for it. Probably won’t be much more talk about Alvarez. Unless it’s that terrific young slugger in Houston.
LikeLike
We are getting hammered today. Close to 8 inches of snow and it is still falling..
LikeLike
Boy do I wish we had your snow here Bear. Starting sometime during the night we’re expecting winds that are a lot worse than anything we’ve had so far. And low humidity. Still have my “go bag” out and ready to go. We have a grove of half-dead trees in a city-maintained area behind our house that the city claims they can’t remove due to lack of funds. Watch for me on the news. I’ll be the guy waving the Dodger hat trying to put out the fire. Send some snow!
LikeLike
Saw the report on those winds Jefe. Fire creates its own wind obviously, but, 96 mph? Man that is insane. I hope people get out of there. I also hope you don’t have to. Be safe man.
We were going to travel to Denver this week but decided against it. Glad we did. Snow. Cold. Not for me.
LikeLike