Dodgers rumored to be favorites for Carlos Correa is ultimate offseason twist

The writing was on the wall for the Los Angeles Dodgers long before Trea Turner took an 11-year, $300 million with the Philadelphia Phillies. Heck, even manager Dave Roberts made it sound like he was gone last week!

The terms of his deal were … unbelievable. The Dodgers were NEVER doing that.

So what’s the shortstop plan for 2023? One of Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts or Dansby Swanson in free agency? A pipe dream in Willy Adames on the trade market? An in-house option in Gavin Lux before addressing deficiencies elsewhere?

Apparently, before the Turner signing became official, the Dodgers were establishing themselves in the free agent market with the biggest heel of the group.

Per reports, the Dodgers emerged as the “leading candidate” for Correa on Sunday, which is something fans could see materialize rather quickly after Turner’s deal.

Dodgers Rumors: Carlos Correa emerging as top free agent target?

Here’s what USA Today’s Bob Nightengale wrote in his latest column from the Winter Meetings:

"“Executives believe the leading candidate to sign Correa is the Dodgers. Certainly money has never been an issue, particularly with $119 million coming off their books. But the tricky part might be convincing the Dodgers’ players, and their fan base, that it’s time to forgive and forget. Correa, of course, was in the heart of that 2017 Astros cheating scandal, and the Dodgers and their fans have loudly voiced their anger. Has enough time gone by to welcome Correa? And, come on, who would Dodgers fans rather see, Correa or Gavin Lux, play shortstop?”"

Nightengale talks about the elephant in the room — whether or not the lasting members of the 2017 Dodgers would be able to accept such a signing. Could be toxic. Then again, winning heals everything, and Lux is nowhere near the level of Turner/Correa as a starting shortstop.

But if Turner just signed for 11 years and $300 million, what’s Correa going to get? Correa is entering his age-28 season, whereas Turner is entering age-30. Correa just got a $35.1 million AAV deal with the Twins; Turner’s is $27.27 million. Correa is better from almost every perspective, other than stealing bases and hitting for average.

If the Dodgers weren’t willing to pay that price for Turner, how will they justify paying that or more for Correa, who might not even be a shortstop in four years?

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