Los Angeles Dodgers: Don’t buy the Manny Machado hype

The Los Angeles Dodgers have a rekindled connection to Manny Machado, although the hype around Machado and the Dodgers should not be bought.

The Los Angeles Dodgers made the biggest move of the trade deadline in 2018 by acquiring superstar shortstop Manny Machado from the Baltimore Orioles. With Corey Seager missing the year due to Tommy John Surgery, Machado was viewed as a half-season rental to help a World Series push.

He did do his part and was a nice addition to the lineup, although he was not spectacular. His postseason antics turned a lot of fans sour on him and the reports of him wanting to play on the East Coast made the Dodgers a very unlikely destination for Machado.

That carried into the offseason as there were no real reports of any interest for Machado by the Dodgers. Seager was returning to short and Machado likely did not want to play third base.

The team could have made it happen, too, as Justin Turner could have shifted back to his natural second base position with Machado and Seager manning the left side of the infield. Not only would it add a big bat in Machado but it would solve the Dodgers’ second base question.

Perhaps that is exactly what the Los Angeles Dodgers were thinking as well as the team seems to actually have interest in Machado. The source? Machado’s father, Manuel, who stated that Manny has received offers from multiple teams, including the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Heck, Manuel Machado even said that the team you think the less of is going to be the one that signs Machado. Nobody is thinking about the Dodgers as a possible suitor, not even trusted MLB insider, Jon Heyman.

So Heyman states that the Los Angeles Dodgers have not made Machado an offer. While I would trust Heyman more than Machado’s father, there could still be inside information that Heyman does not know.

Either way, even if the Dodgers offered Machado something, I would not buy into this hype at all.

I do think that the Dodgers at least had some sort of discussions with Manny Machado. Whether that was a concrete offer or the front office simply thanking him for his contributions, I doubt that the front office simply cut off all communications with a guy that they traded five prospects for.

That could be where Machado’s father is getting the idea of the Dodgers offering a contract to his son.

Even if there is a contract it likely is nothing but a fallback option for Machado. The Andrew Friedman-led front office does not seem to be keen on offering either Machado or Bryce Harper a lengthy contract.

Thus, I could see the team offering Machado something in the four-year range for $120 million. It gives Machado the payday he wants while allowing him to hit the free agency market again at 30 years old and allows the Dodgers the long-term flexibility to lock down the core in Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager and Walker Buehler.

This is all speculation, though. That would be the best possible contract the Dodgers would likely offer Machado and it might even be smaller than that.

There are teams that are going to pay Machado close to the money he wants. And while reports have said otherwise, he will get his money, even if it is not a team that is atop his list.

Is it possible that the Los Angeles Dodgers somehow land Manny Machado? Sure. However, I would not buy the hype whatsoever. The Dodgers seem to be nothing but a fallback option, if they are even an option at all.