Dodgers Team News

Dodgers Linked to Free Agent Shortstop Marcus Semien

The Dodgers have already been strongly linked to Liam Hendriks this offseason, as no surprise to any MLB fan. Los Angeles is always looking for arms out of the bullpen to get the job done, but especially so ahead of the 2021 season. 

What we did not expect is the Dodgers being in on shortstops or even third baseman. LA has already been linked to Nolan Arenado with Justin Turner on the market, but even that was a surprise. Most around baseball had anticipated that JT returning was a foregone conclusion. 



The latest report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan further clouds an already unclear situation in Los Angeles. Passan notes that the Dodgers could be linked to free-agent shortstop Marcus Semien, who just hit the open market this season. 

One name to keep an eye on in the coming days, sources say, is Marcus Semien. … Among the teams that could find themselves in play: the Dodgers, Mets, Blue Jays, Phillies, Astros, Cubs, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels, Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers.

Notably, when you list half the league, the rumors might not have all the teeth in the world.

Semien had one REALLY good offensive season with the Athletics in 2019. He slashed .285/.369/.522 with 33 home runs and drove in 92 runs that season, finishing third in AL MVP voting. Defensively, Semien would be a significant upgrade at shortstop. By UZR standards, Semien is one of the top five shortstops in all of baseball since 2017. 

The problem is that the Dodgers already have a shortstop in Corey Seager, and fans would like him around for a long time. However, reports that Semien has already been asked by other teams to move to third base could bring more clarity. If LA is going to miss out on Justin Turner, Semien could be a viable replacement at third. He has played 50 games there throughout his career. 

The question then shifts to money and how likely the Dodgers are to actually make a move like this. In my opinion, the team only goes after Semien if Justin Turner is unwilling to waiver on his request for a 3-year deal

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Dodgers Still In On Liam Hendriks While He Searches for a 4-Year Deal

19 Comments

  1. I don’t see why 3 years for Turner – if it’s structured right – is a problem.

    1. I agree. Not sure what Turner is asking for but a two year deal with a team option for year three should be easily doable. Do something similar to what they did for Utley but with obviously more money.

  2. We will see how this turns out but Teams are not rushing to sign long-term or big-money deals when they lost money last year and 2021 does not look to be normal either. Experts are estimating June or later for herd immunity numbers. And the Labor Agreement is up in 2022 and there is a lot of talk about a strike.
    The Dodgers have young guys Rios on the roster, Mann on the 60 man Hoese and Vargas coming up, and others.
    The Dodgers know Turner they also know they have players coming up from the minors and do not want to block them. I am still confident they will sign Turner when he does not find teams rushing to give him 3 years. If the DH were approved in the NL that would help his cause tremendously.

  3. How clever these journalists are! Using words like linked or rumored just gives them the opportunity to say whatever they want to come up with a story by their deadline. Once one of them says something then the rest of them can repeat it as “sources say” or ” rumors ” or ” the Dodgers are linked to signing all the major free agents”. Clever, but obvious!

  4. Semien is not the answer to any Dodgers question. Other than his career year in 2019, Seminen has failed to reach a wRC+ of 100 (MLB average). Dodgers can do better, much better, with the money and years it will take to sign Semien. Team would be much better off giving that money to Chris Taylor in an extension. Taylor may not have the defensive stats of Semien, but he is a very good defensive player and in his Dodgers career has recorded wRC+ of 126, 113, 107, and 131 — a huge improvement over Semien.

    1. Marcus Semien´s career average over 162 games is .254/22/72 with a .747 OPS and 4.1 WAR. That is an above average player. Chris Taylor in that span averages .263/16/64 with a .779 OPS and 3.8 WAR. Marcus Semien is the better offensive and defensive player, and I´d say 10-12M a year for him is fair. I think Chris Taylor resigns, but for short term(I´d say 2 years). And other than 2017, Chris Taylor has not had an outstanding year. That said, I would take Marcus Semien over Justin Turner over this stage in their career, because one just turned 30, the other 36, and Semien stays healthy all year, Turner does not(only played past 130 games once-2017) and Semien is a far better defensive player than Turner. I think 3 years, 30M is fine for him.

      1. The problem with averages, one career year offsets other years of mediocrity. in 2019 Semien slashed .285/.369/.522/.892 – throw out that career year and his career slash line drops below average MLB players. Semien v. Taylor in head to head playing seasons wRC+: 2017 (97 v. 126); 2018 (96 v. 113); 2019 (137 v. 107); 2020 (91 v. 131). In 2015 Seminen’s wRC+ was 97; 2016 98. That is 5 seasons out of six that Semien was below the average MLB wRC+. WAR – Semien’s 2019 WAR was 7.6 which significantly changes his average. Other year WAR: 1.4, 2.1, 1.7, 3.8, 1.2. Dodgers can spend their money better than signing Semien.

      2. What? JT hit .307 with an OPS of .860 last year. Since it was a short season, let’s look at ’19: .290/27/67 with .881 OPS and 4.5 WAR while he played in 135 games. JT hit .320 with 2HRs and 1.066 in the World Series – where every hit was big – in 2020.
        You can have Semien; I’ll take old JT for the next 3 years.

  5. Not happening. Just an agent “floating” some strategically leaked fake news to drive interest in his FA client. Every FA, every year seems to get connected to the Dodgers because of their deep pockets, leadership and dedication to being competitive each year and their huge TV market.

    The Dodgers will re-sign JT and one more relief pitcher and then focus on getting Seager, Bellinger, Urias, Buehler locked-up.

  6. Some one please shoot me! Resign Turner and play him at second base! buy or trade for a BIG righthanded BAT!

  7. Just like trading for Arenado and Story, even considering Siemens is so farfetched.. But these writers feel that the Dodgers, with their ‘riches’ should be linked to every FA known to man. Lets just get past this because this Siemens deal is NOT happening. As with most here re-signing Turner and extending Seager are the avenues Dodgers should take care of.

  8. Marcus Semien rumored to Dodgers = we have nothing to talk about. Sure seems more like the Dodgers doing their due diligence rather than seriously pursuing him.

    1. Exactly the Dodgers always kick the tires. It’s what u should do. Ask around see if there any opportunities that your team might have been aware of.
      That said if Seager refuses to extend his contract they should think about other options.
      This year will probably be a short year. Next year a strike is very possible. The possibility of 2 years of lagging revenue for the MLB is probably them hesitant to sign deals.

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