IF THE FEELING'S MUTUAL, MAKE THE DEAL FOR DJ!

I know that DJ will come back to the Yankees, but only if the Yankees don't try and screw him.  Don't forget, the Mets want to make a splash, and having DJ LeMahieu as a big off season signing would be the way to do it for chunky Steve Cohen.  But here's the thing... the Yankees love DJ, and DJ loves the Yankees, and if they like each other that much.... you gotta make the deal.  For me, if I'm Cashman... this one's easy. He wants 5 years, you give him 5 years. If he's willing to come to New York for less money because he likes it there... you still give him alittle more dough because he's the most productive dude we've had in years.  He signs, it's done... DJ remains a Yankee.

The New York Post writes:

"The Yankees and LeMahieu haven’t advanced very far in their discussions to date, multiple sources said. LeMahieu turned down the Yankees’ qualifying offer, which would have paid him $18.9 million for one year, and he is due a large raise from the two-year, $24 million pact he signed with the Yankees in January 2019.

The obvious, if imperfect, comparable is third baseman Josh Donaldson, who signed a four-year, $92 million contract with the Twins in January. Donaldson was entering his age-34 season, while LeMahieu will be an age-32 player next year; on the flip side, Donaldson had compiled a stronger track record than LeMahieu. The novel coronavirus, however, limited Major League Baseball to 60 regular-season games without paying fans this past campaign and threatens next season’s revenues. Hence the Yankees’ methodical approach to re-signing LeMahieu. "

And when it comes to numbers and years and comparing players, it's smart to know that Donaldson is no DJ LeMahieu even though this article tries to make an argument for it. Donaldson is more well known... that's about it Kenny Davidoff. DJ is not a household name... until after the last 2 seasons in New York of course... and that's the difference. DJ is more productive, a more versatile player... a better player all around these days. You pay him more than Donaldson at 34... and you give him an extra year. That's what I'd do.

And then you need to factor in the Mets. Steve Cohen wants to make such a big splash, it's sickening. And he could do it with DJ. The question is timing however. The Yankees need to stay engaged. The Yankees need to make their offer known, but only after the other teams like the Mets and Blue Jays do it.  And when DJ gets those offers, the right thing to do is to go back to his former employer and say "Hey... the Mets are offering me this. Can you match it?" That's a collaboration on a good deal for both the Yanks and DJ. 

Bottom line... I don't want to see DJ go elsewhere, but I also don't want to hear from Cashman's mouth after the fact, "Well... we never made DJ a formal offer."  That's bad business.

Hey Cash, the Yankee Universe wants this deal done. Do it.