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Dodgers Rumors: LA Reportedly ‘in Talks’ with DJ LeMahieu

It’s response season for the LA Dodgers. After the San Diego Padres went and traded for a new front of the rotation, focus has shifted to Los Angeles and what president of baseball ops Andrew Friedman might do to counter. If anything at all. 

This was a topic of conversation on MLB Network’s Hot Stove program on Tuesday morning where guest, am570’s Dodger Talk host Dave Vassegh, said he feels Andy Friedman might have a trick up his sleeve.



Andrew did say at the beginning of the winter that he would like to add a right-handed bat, and from what I’m hearing, DJ LeMahieu is on their radar. They are definitely in talks with LeMahieu.

It’s been noted that the 32-year-old LeMahieu is asking for big money in free agency this winter. While the industry still believes that a reunion with the Yankees is the most likely to happen, New York is reportedly balking at giving in to the infielder’s demand for a 5-year deal.

With all that in mind, it’s harder to see the Dodgers offering a deal of that magnitude to a 32-year-old player. Even if that player is a two-time batting champ. Still, as Vassegh notes, Andrew Friedman has maintained all winter long that his goals for the offseason are adding relief help and a right-handed bat. Few right-handed batters in the league are better than DJ LeMahieu.

Related: Should LA Pursue One of Baseball’s Best Pure Hitters?

It would be a fantastic get for the Dodgers. Moreover, it would be a high-level but imperfect response to the Padres and their recent wheeling and dealing. But, in all likelihood, it would also spell the end of Justin Turner’s career in blue. Provided that LA’s plan is to stay close to or under the luxury tax threshold in 2021.

The new year is days away and spring training starts in less than two months. While an immediate response from the Dodgers would be nice, there’s really no rush.

NEXT: How LA Can Counter San Diego’s Productive Offseason

Clint Pasillas

Clint Pasillas has been writing, blogging, and podcasting about the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2008. Under Clint's leadership as the Lead Editor, Dodgers Nation has grown into one of the most read baseball sites in the world with millions of unique visitors per month. Find him online on Twitter/X or his YouTube channel!

22 Comments

  1. Yes, the likelihood of the Dodgers outbidding both the Yankees and the Mets is extremely low. But, gosh, we need a right handed bat and especially one that – by modern standards – rarely strikes out and you can’t shift against. A lineup with Betts and LeMahieu pretty much makes up for the all the swing and miss lefties we have. I think that’s worth five years, especially if you can keep the AAV down to around $20 million.

    1. 3 years @ 90 mill and no more. 5 years puts him at 37 years old. It takes a really special player to keep his skills at 37. Also, you have Bellinger and Seager to sign. If you give LeMahieu 5 years what will they expect. You can’t pay them all top dollar… One year in the luxury tax, maybe two, and at some point you have to reset, either by trade or letting other people go whom you need. You just paid Betts big. Seager is going to require top dollar and Bellinger’s agent is Scott BorASS. He will ask for the moon even if it can’t be had. And down the road you will have Max Muncy, then Walker Buhler, and so on and so on… It could get ugly at some point then what do you do.And this doesn’t even take into consideration some star in the making in the minor leagues(no not Gavin Lux!) that might come to the majors and require a fat contract at some point… Its just not as easy as some of you would like to think…

      1. Seager and Kershaw after ’21; Bellinger, Barnes, and Taylor after ’22; then Buehler, Muncy, and Urias after ’23. That’s a lot of money to find.

  2. I don’t buy this rumor. LeMahieu will end up in NY. It would be a panic move and I do not see Friedman or Kasten panicking. A 5 year deal would be too long at his age and the Dodgers have several prospects to bring up. Yes I know his skill level. But they have to re-sign Seager, Bellinger and Buehler in the future. Plus Urias. Too Long too much Money.

    1. I like re-signing Turner to cover 3B, and acquiring LeMahieu to play 2B. I would not go 5 years. I would shoot for a 4 year front loaded contract to minimize the crunch to to resign our own FAs down the road. When Turner’s 2 or 3 year contract expires I would move LeMahieu to 3B. Maybe by then Lux will be able to play ball at an MLB level. I do like getting LeMaheiu as a critical RHB, but it’s a long shot. The Yankees want him back, and the Mets are looking to challenge, and spend some money to do it. But it’s still worth pursuing. And we still need that all important shutdown closer.

  3. I’d be fine with Turner and Hendricks, and let it ride, but if they got LeMahieu, the line up would be epic, one of the best in history. Betts, Seager, and LeMahieu 1,2,3, that’s three MVP type players in their prime, then you line up the sluggers, including 2019 MVP, wow!

  4. I notice that there are always a lot of rumors about the Dodgers acquiring this guy or that guy that never come close to materializing, and most shouldn’t. On the other hand, the Padres just fly under the radar, and quietly and quickly put together a team equal to the Dodgers as top contenders for a world championship. Just an observation. But you kind have to admire the Padres approach. They have built a fantastic farm system over the last 5 or 6 years, bringing up outstanding players like Tatis, and building up trade capital to make big moves. They’ve done an outstanding job. The two best teams in baseball at this point are the Dodgers and the Padres. I knew that the Padres would be contenders 3 years ago because of their farm system. I didn’t think they would be in a position to seriously contend for a championship this fast though. They are a serious wake up call for the Dodgers.

  5. The Padres have mortgaged their future for a “mess of potage.” as the old scriptural verse goes… They are very hamstrung now. They look like the Flordia Marlins the year after they won the World Series. If you recall, the next year they traded everybody and wallowed on the bottom half of the league for several years…And now, they don’t even have much of a farm system, trading away a lot of their top talent. If you are going to do that, you had better get World Championship play out of the people you traded for. Snell is good if he can hold up. That is a big IF.

    1. According to MLBs prospect rankings, the Padres, even after these trades, have 4 players in the top 100, including #3. The Dodgers have 1, at #63. The Dodgers are loaded with young guys at the major league level, but it is their farm system which is depleted of blue chips, Ruiz is #2, a super slow singles hitter who batted .250 in AA two years in a row, as a weak armed catcher, that should tell you all you need to know. I haven’t looked at the Pads payroll, so not sure how they are affording all these acquisitions, but after being on track for 100 wins in a full season last season, and adding all this talent, they are looking like serious equals to the Dodgers for some years to come. It’ll be fun, two super teams fighting it out.

      1. The Dodgers have 2 players in top 100; Gray at #62 and Ruiz at #68. They had 5 to start 2020 – with Gonsolin just outside – but Lux, May, Gonsolin, and Graterol all lost prospect status last season. Without minor league play last year, today’s top 100 list still heavily weighs pre-draft data for younger players. The Dodgers pick late so they don’t benefit from that data but you can bet that Hoese, Busch, Cartaya, Miller, and Beeter who all play at A level will soon appear on the list once play resumes.

  6. Totally not true cause Dodgers don’t need an expensive 34 year old infielder.Dodgers are superior to any team right now without signing lemahieu too old and expensive Lindor inferior to Seager or Trevor Bauer inferior to Urias,Buhler and May . Yu darkish won’t make Padres better than Dodgers either all Padres have is Machado with an edge over Dodgers thirdbaseman other positions Dodgers way too much superior to Padres even at shortstop tatis too many and Blakeerrors and will never have a post season like Seager just had,Seager better offensively and better defensively.So all they have is Machado and Blake Snell and Rios if he plays regularly will out homer. Manny Machado.

  7. Some of you act like this is an auction and LeMahieu has to go with the highest bidder. If LeMahieu wants to play for a ring, he’ll take the Dodgers offer…

  8. All due respect to my fellow Blue fans but, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?? Blake Snell proved how good he is, and how much he deserved the 2018 Cy Young, and Darvish has found his pitch again, and to say all they have is Machado is a joke Tatis will just get better, and better each year? I do not believe they are in the class of the Dodgers, yet, and the Dodgers are just going to get better? All due respect to Jackson, the Dodgers are fine in the minors, but you are right in regards to the Padres Farm system, they are deep, but they are using a lot of their blue chip players to get these new players, and who knows what kind of money these players will ask if they stay? The Padres can not afford to wait to win, they are going to have to do it soon, the next couple of years who knows what will happen in the long run, that is where the Dodgers have the edge over San Diego, LA is a big market, I think their are 2 teams, maybe three if you include the Mets? I think the Dodgers should offer LeMahieu 3 years at 75$million, because I don’t think the Yankees want to sign him for more then 2 years, that is are are right handed hitter, and a gold glove at second or third? I rather pay him then give up a bunch of players and pay an extra 100$million for Nolan? I would love to re-sign Turner, and sign Brad Hand, or Liam Hendricks, and Blake Treinen, that takes care of are needs?

  9. Happens every year players agent spreads rumors involving Dodgers to increase the price in this case scare the Yankees that Dodgers are interested in their player when it’s not true.Rios averaged a hr every 9 at bats playing regularly he will easy hit over 38 hrs don’t need lemahieu he’s not worth 2 years forget about 5.3rd base is covered whether Dodgers sign JT or they give Rios the position he will answer.

  10. Unfortunately his demands are too high. We have to be able to sign our own guys soon. I think Snell and Darvish will get their deserved rings next year and then after that we’ll win another

    1. Deserved rings? Deserved for doing what? Millionaire Snell told the baseball fans of America who were dying for baseball during the onslaught of the pandemic in March that he wasn’t going to play because he didn’t need it. He got castrated for that. And Darvish came up small for us in the postseason whether it was because the Astros knew what was coming or he just spit the bit. It was probably more of the latter.

      Next year? They don’t touch us next year.

  11. MONEY the Dodgers have a lot! Resign Justin Turner and Trade for or Purchase a Big Right Handed Bat! Come on Andrew, Make the Move!

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