Dodgers: What to make of Corey Seager’s contract extension comments

The media (and social media) have done their part to examine Clayton Kershaw’s contract situation with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Now, you knew the follow-up question would be coming.

It’s Corey Seager’s turn because, well, fans are (to put it nicely) in wait-and-see mode with Kenley Jansen.

Seager is in his final year of arbitration eligibility and will be a free agent after 2021 and it’s obvious his blistering 2020 campaign in which he tore through the regular season and then won NLCS and World Series MVP en route to a championship has complicated his future in LA a bit.

Why? Because his agent is Scott Boras and he’s about to enter a star-studded free agency class among shortstop (if Francisco Lindor, Carlos Correa, Trevor Story and Javier Baez all make it there) just as the league and players association are set to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement.

So it makes sense why Seager opted not to get into specifics about an extension with the Dodgers, thought about it for a second, and then gave us the politically correct response not to ruffle any feathers.

Here’s what Corey Seager had to say about potential contract extension talks with the Dodgers.

“Ah, yes, of course, uhhhh I don’t want to be a distraction! I love my team!”

But there’s a reason Seager said this. The star shortstop is famously a client of agent Scott Boras, who typically advises his clients not to sign extensions until free agency. On top of that, both parties are in the worst possible situation with regard to negotiations.

There’s not a single extension the Dodgers can offer without insulting Seager, especially in the wake of Fernando Tatis Jr.’s record-setting deal with the Padres, considering the slugger’s last two incredible years, the last of which helped the franchise snap a 32-year championship drought.

On the other hand, when we look at the situation surrounding the new CBA, if things go the players’ way, we could be looking at new all-time profits lining their pockets as the union hopes to dismantle the owners’ unsavory labor practices, which were brought to the forefront as of late thanks to former Mariners CEO Kevin Mather.

So outside of the Dodgers bidding against themselves and Seager and Boras more than likely taking a deal that doesn’t maximize the shortstop’s value, there’s simply no winner here. And when you dive into the biggest contracts for shortstops ever, aside from Tatis’, there’s only Xander Bogaerts’ six-year, $120 million deal to examine, and you can bet Boras will be looking to blow that one out of the water as best he can.

It’s a complicated situation. And both parties stand to benefit by watching this year play out.

And that’s all we can make of Seager’s comments at this point, because we know Boras and the Dodgers have been staring at one another ever since the confetti dropped in late October.

Dodgers: Did Fernando Tatis contract complicate future talks with Corey Seager?

The Padres set the market by signing Fernando Tatis Jr. to a 14-year, $340 million extension. Is that going to affect the LA Dodgers and Corey Seager?