Yankees Could Steal Star Shortstop in Rangers Salary Dump

The idea of the Philadelphia Phillies trading Bryce Harper to the New York Yankees was the first pipe dream of the offseason. There is now a second one. This one involves Corey Seager.

The concept of a Seager trade began to brew when Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News mentioned that the Texas Rangers were going to shed payroll. One thing that he threw out there was that the Yankees could be a suitor since they were one of the few teams that the shortstop could not veto a trade to.

It's one of those deals that are more likely to happen in MLB The Show. Still, the baseball world already saw one big-money shortstop move at the deadline last year when Carlos Correa made his return to the Houston Astros after the Minnesota Twins offloaded him. Correa was a much tougher contract to move, yet it still happened.

Corey Seager's first career home run at Yankee Stadium has blown this game open 💪 pic.twitter.com/vh3Tct2IGH
— MLB (@MLB) August 10, 2024

Selling High on Seager

In 102 games last year, Seager was a plus defender with 4 Outs Above Average at short. He hit 21 home runs and had a 4 WAR according to Fangraphs. The Rangers would be selling high on their oft-injured infielder, who helped them win a World Series in 2023.

The Yankees made a mistake by not signing him in 2021, but one way to rectify that gaffe would be to take him on in a potential Rangers salary dump, that, for now, only exists in the annals of one of their beat writers' minds. It would be the true star to have hit behind Aaron Judge that the Yankees need.

Seager does have an ugly injury history, especially in recent seasons, but his peripherals tell the story of a player who mashes baseballs at a rate that few shortstops in the sport can. On top of that, he's a lefty. Seager is in the 90th percentile and above in expected batting average, expected slugging, average exit velocity, barrel rate, and hard hit rate. Seager is also one of those rare talents in the sport who doesn't swing and miss much and also has a high walk rate. His 23% chase rate is in the 83rd percentile, and his 13% walk rate is in the 93rd percentile.

Not only would Seager add power to the lineup, but they would have three guaranteed tough outs were they to add him. Just like Seager, Trent Grisham had a high walk rate last season. He had a 14.1% walk rate last season. The captain, Judge, posted a video-game-esque walk rate of 18.3%.

New York Yankees outfielders Trent Grisham, Aaron Judge — Sep 24, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham (12) celebrates his two run home run against the Chicago White Sox with on deck batter Aaron Judge (99) during the eighth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Negatives of a Seager Trade

It should be mentioned, though, that for all the positives of a Seager trade, the deal would be the Yankees taking on the worst parts of the contract of a player who has had a long track record of being hurt. He is also owed $190 million over the next six seasons. He will be making $31 million a year until 2031.

This is why Grant threw the notion of a Seager trade out there. Chris Young, general manager of the Texas Rangers, said the organization would be shedding payroll, which is one way to take $31 million off the top.

"I just don't feel sorry for ourselves that our payroll is going to be smaller than it was," Young said, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. "I don't think it's going to inhibit us. … I'm a competitor. It doesn't deter me. It means we better be better at our jobs. And that's what I expect to do. I think the biggest thing that we need to do is play up to our expectations. This past season and the year before, we did not do that."

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