Dodgers: Tender Joc Pederson and Corey Seager

The Dodgers renewed Joc Pederson and Corey Seager’s rookie contract for a little over $500K. Pederson’s contract is worth $555K while Seager’s contract renewal is $575K.

The deals were first reported by Jon Heyman, Pederson is entering his third full season with the Dodgers and will likely play out the final year of his rookie contract this season. The young Dodger centerfielder will be arbitration eligible at the end of this season, so he could be looking at a contract extension during the season.

Pederson was an 11th round draft pick by the Dodgers in the 2010 Amateur Draft. He has hit 51 Home Runs in his career and holds a .224 career batting average. A lot has been made about his struggles to consistently make contact with the ball, but Peterson has big hopes for this season.

There’s been a lot of talk coming out of Camelback Ranch that Dave Roberts could potentially rely on a platoon outfield to start the season. Last year, Pederson only had 77 plate appearances against lefties.

However Roberts goes about managing the outfield, one thing is certain, Pederson offers a lot of reliability covering centerfield. Because of his glove, Roberts is looking to give Pederson more opportunities against lefties this season.

"“Obviously, we like his glove out there in center field and his ability to slug,” Roberts said."

As Dodger fans, we’ve come to learn Pederson’s game quite well after his first two seasons. We know his home run upside is key to the lineup and with the current roster, he doesn’t have to be a superstar to make an impact with the team.

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Baseball is a game about constantly making adjustments. Pederson is always willing to make adjustments and has shown promise when he’s had success with his mechanics. The Dodgers hope that Pederson could consistently keep putting together at-bats and cutting down on the strikeouts so that he can become their everyday centerfielder.

Corey Seager’s contract was also renewed today according to Jon Heyman. Seager has been sidelined for most of this spring up to this point. The news came out today that Seager will be held out of spring training action for yet another week per Andy McCullough.

Seager tweaked his back two weeks ago and hasn’t been on the field since. The injury doesn’t appear to be serious and he’s fully expected to be ready for Opening Day, but the fact that he hasn’t shown progress is concerning.

Next: Early Injuries Already Plaguing the Dodgers

It good to see the front office tender these players. We know both are essential parts of our everyday roster moving forward. Let’s hope both these young stars can get back on the field and lead the Dodgers to another NLCS birth.