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If LeMahieu wants to remain with the Yankees, blame it on the ball park, the hitter-friendly dimensions that have helped make him a very rich man.
Not sure how it serves the Jays to have this information out there, but MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported on Friday that the team was a stout second to the Yankees on LeMahieu, offering four years and $78 million US. Whether that helped push the Yanks to the six years and $90 million it took to get him is anyone’s guess, but it’s not a stretch to suggest that the Jays are one of the few teams pushing in the marketplace.
But given that to land a player such as LeMahieu, or any of the upper-level free agents out there, it’s almost a given the Jays will have to pay a serious premium. With the winter plodding along and pitchers and catchers due to report in less than a month, the urgency continues to ratchet up.
As of now, the off-season production includes two signings — pitcher Robbie Ray, who still counts as a reclamation process, albeit a promising one, and the five-year extension for Shapiro.
The off-season isn’t done, especially with two big guns still remaining. But it’s hard not to feel as though it’s slipping away.
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First, he was the Jays’ player of the year…
