Dodgers Rumors: Giants & Dodgers Battling for DJ LeMahieu?

There has been a run on second baseman with Jed Lowrie and Brian Dozier finding new deals.  The Dodgers have dipped into the free agent pool for second baseman but they are still interested in DJ LeMahieu.

The Dodgers have been very quiet on the free agent front after signing Joe Kelly weeks ago.  That could change soon after the run on second baseman has begun.  Daniel Murphy signed earlier this off-season and now Brian Dozier and Jed Lowrie have come off the board.  The next one figures ti be DJ LeMahieu.

The Dodgers and Giants have both shown interest in the former Rockies’ second baseman although the Giants would have to trade away Joe Panik to make room.  For the Dodgers they have three internal options in Chris Taylor, Enrique Hernandez, and Max Muncy although Muncy is more of a first baseman.  CT3 and Hernandez could also be more valuable in their utility roles rather than holding down one starting position.

It’s fair to wonder how much of an upgrade LeMahieu would be offensively.  Given that he has played at Coors Field, a regression would surely be coming with the majority of his games coming at a more pitcher friendly stadium like Dodger Stadium.  Over the past three seasons, DJ has hit .345 at home and a lower but still respectable .277 away from Coors Field.

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The one thing going for him is that he has hit more home runs on the road over the past three seasons with 20 of his 34 home runs being hit away from Coors.  Another good thing that LeMahieu would bring is the ability to play every day no matter who is on the mound.  In the last three seasons, DJ has hit .300 off righties and .345 against southpaw pitching.  He would help the Dodgers shift away from a platoon style lineup with Corey Seager also back in the fold.

The one area where DJ LeMahieu would be a big upgrade is on the defensive side.  There are not many second baseman in the game who are better defensively than DJ and he is much better at second base than Chris Taylor and Enrique Hernandez are.  Justin Turner, Corey Seager, DJ LeMahieu and Cody Bellinger (when he plays first) would give the Dodgers one of the better defensive infields in baseball.

It remains to be seen how many free agents the Dodgers will pursue outside of the catcher position which is the one true position they need another player at.  Second base and outfield are areas where the Dodgers could bring in another player but it’s not a necessity.  With Spring training getting closer by the day, the Dodgers should be wrapping up their off-season moves fairly soon.