One of the biggest cogs in the offseason free agent wheel — DJ LeMahieu — has reached an agreement that will keep him in a New York Yankees uniform likely for the rest of his career (a contract, I don’t mind telling you, seems a little risky on the back end for the Yankees.)
The Yankees signed the 32-year-old infielder to a six-year, $90 million deal, and shortly thereafter signed former Indians ace Corey Kluber to a one-year deal worth $11 million. It seems like the Yankees are putting their money where their postseason aspirations are.
Another hot name on the free agency list, JT Realmuto has apparently received a $100 million offer from the Phillies to stay with them, but the offer has not yet been finalized, leaving Realmuto a bit of a question mark.
That said, it seems with less than a month to go until pitchers and catchers would ideally like to report to spring training, teams have finally realized they’ll need some players to report to camp with.
Now if only the Commissioner’s office and Players’ Union could come to terms on the universal DH.
- Anthony Castrovince looks at how the Players Alliance is honoring the memory of Martin Luther King Jr.
- Other leagues are attempting kid-themed broadcasts to lure in new fans, so C. Trent Rosencrans and Richard Deitsch ponder what an MLB-Nickelodeon mash-up might look like. (The Athletic subscription required.)
- How one man’s call for a game of catch rallied a community together. Story by Mike Wilson.
- Dan Szymborski looks at how the Giants have managed to quietly rebuild their rotation.
- Meanwhile Tom Verducci fears that a 162-game season is going to be tough on a new crop of young pitchers.
- Buster Olney assesses which clubs still have a lot of work to do before spring training rolls around.
- Roger Cormier, whose work I love to share here, writes about the last fun umpire.
- This collection of Don Zimmer cards is just tremendous.
The late Don Zimmer born 90 years ago today. His serious beanings were recounted in cartoons on the backs of several of his @Topps cards. @SABRbbcards @nightowlcards @CardboardHistry @PostWarCards @VintageCardsOn1 @breakdowncards pic.twitter.com/bSnLGIhk97
— George Bennett (@gbennettpost) January 17, 2021
- Looks like the Astros and MLB are being sued over the recent minor league realignment, writes Daniel Kaplan. (The Athletic subscription required.)
- Ben Clemens takes a look at league expansion and other fun baseball things.
- Matt Martell foresees the market for shortstops will be heating up following the move of Francisco Lindor.
- Mike Axisa looks at how the Blue Jays just keep narrowly missing out on the hot market picks.
- If you love deep dives into baseball history, Do-Hyoung Park has the incredible true story behind Harmon Killebrew’s red seat.
- Joe Posnanski’s Hall of Fame snubs series is into the top ten, and number eight brings us Curt Flood. (The Athletic subscription required.)
- For any podcast listeners, CC Sabathia’s podcast brings on Blake Snell to talk about team rivalry and of course, that big World Series exit.
- Let Twitter pick your 2021 season winner. (I got the Padres)
The 2021 #WorldSeries champs will be ... pic.twitter.com/iG1IGxh47H
— MLB (@MLB) January 17, 2021
And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.