3 possible Corey Seager trades Rangers could actually pull off

It's fair to wonder how much more of the Corey Seager experience the Texas Rangers can tolerate. The 32-year-old has landed on the IL yet again, and what was supposed to be a relatively short stay for a mild concussion, one that his lack of hustle caused, has become a protracted mess of uncertainty.

While Seager languishes on the shelf, Wyatt Langford's hot streak has raised questions as to whether he, not the five-time All-Star, should be the face of the Rangers moving forward. Given ownership's offseason directive to cut payroll, re-centering things around the controllable young outfielder would make a ton of sense.

However, moving Seager in a trade won't be easy. He's owed $157.5 million over the next five seasons, and he hasn't played more than 123 games over the last three full campaigns. Throw in the fact that he's hit an un-Seager-like .186/.284/.373 this year, and it's hard to see who takes the bait.

There is something of a blueprint, though. At last year's trade deadline, the Minnesota Twins traded Carlos Correa back to the Houston Astros. Correa is just five months younger than Seager, has a lengthy injury history of his own, and is on a pricey contract.

Part of what facilitated that deal for the Twins was their willingness to send $33 million to cover part of the $96 million that Correa was owed. It's also worth noting that Correa's contract is a bit complex. A series of vesting options from 2029 through 2032 could add up to $70 million more to his tally. At which point, he wouldn't be all that much cheaper than Seager is today.

The other big key to swinging that deal was the very light return Minnesota received. Going back to the Twins was a then-26-year-old left-handed pitcher named Matt Mikulski, who hadn't pitched above Hi-A despite being a 2021 second-round pick. Seager, when healthy, is a better player than Correa, but the biggest allure here for Texas would be culling his salary from the books.

Assuming the Rangers pay something in the neighborhood of $50-$60 million, roughly a third of what Seager is owed, they might get a mid-tier prospect back. That doesn't mean they have to pack it in, either. This could simply be a rebalancing act of sorts, allowing Ezequiel Duran to take over full-time at shortstop and setting the organization up for a more flexible future.

With all that out of the way, there are three teams with both the need and the finances to make a play for Seager, and we'll take a look at what Texas could get back from each.

The Rangers could rekindle Corey Seager trade talks with the Yankees

The Rangers and the New York Yankees had some initial trade talks about Seager over the winter, but ultimately, Texas seemed to pull back after dealing Marcus Semien to the New York Mets.

Now, the two clubs could revisit a deal. The Yankees haven't actually been that bad at shortstop. The duo of Jose Caballero and Anthony Volpe has put up a .733 OPS that ranks eighth in baseball. However, it's clear that they'd rather use Caballero as a utility man, and Volpe, well, he has a complicated history in New York, which involves brief hot streaks, long cold spells, and mind-boggling blunders.

In all of these talks, the Rangers are going to have to fork over some cash. With the Yankees, however, there are a variety of ways they could go. One idea would be for Chris Young to take back a bad contract in a swap, with Giancarlo Stanton being a potential option.

Stanton is owed $15 million in 2027 and then has a $15 million option for 2028 that comes with a $10 million buyout, meaning beyond his prorated 2026 salary, he'd be at least $25 million hitting the future books. However, he's been even more injury-prone than Seager in recent years.

A more sensible approach would be to get prospect value back, so with that in mind, there are a couple of young arms the Rangers could target.

Chase Hampton was once a budding star who looked like a future ace back in 2023, but then elbow complications leading to Tommy John surgery cost him most of 2024 and all of 2025. He's yet to find his groove, posting a 6.26 ERA this year between three levels, topping out at Double-A.

Allen Facundo is a 23-year-old lefty who has a big arm but has suffered injury issues of his own. He has a 3.63 ERA with 12.79 K/9 and 5.68 BB/9 over his action in both Single-A and Hi-A this year. New York is flush with pitching talent, so taking a chance on these two boom-or-bust arms could pay huge dividends for the Rangers.

The Rangers could send Corey Seager back to the Dodgers

Who better to acquire Seager than a club that knows him very well, the Los Angeles Dodgers? It's true that the Dodgers already have a handsomely paid shortstop in Mookie Betts, but Betts hasn't looked like the same player since he got sick ahead of the Tokyo Series last year.

As a result, the Dodgers have received a 17th-ranked .673 OPS from their shortstops this year. On top of that, Betts' positional flexibility would allow both he and Seager to co-exist in the same lineup.

Los Angeles has a seemingly endless pile of money, but even so, the Rangers will get back a better return if they include some cash.

The strength of the Dodgers' farm system is its outfield depth. In this deal, they get two outfielders on different ends of the spectrum.

Ching-Hsien Ko is a 19-year-old outfielder signed out of Taiwan who has been tearing it up with a .285/.417/.490 with 10 homers in A-ball. He's likely expendable because Los Angeles has seven other outfield prospects ranked ahead of him in the top 30 that are all further along in their development.

The Dodgers have long ignored Ward, who is coming off two straight seasons of at least 34 homers down in Triple-A. At 28 years old, he's finally made his major league debut due to Teoscar Hernandez's hamstring injury. Hernandez is on the verge of a return from the IL, so Ward's time in LA will likely come to an end. He could help the Rangers in two ways. First, he's a lefty power bat that can play out in the outfield. Second, he has experience at first base and could platoon with Jake Burger.

The Rangers could take advantage of the Blue Jays' desperation with a Corey Seager trade

The Toronto Blue Jays came within inches of a World Series title last fall, and then went on a spending spree over the winter. So far, they haven't gotten the results they wanted, sitting at 39-40, but they're still within the thick of the wild card chase, and clearly don't want to pack it in.

Their primary shortstop, Andres Gimenez, is an excellent defender but is a true liability with the bat, and as a whole, they've gotten a 22nd-ranked .652 OPS out of the position to date. Getting some more pop from the position would be ideal.

This gives Texas two youngsters at opposite ends of the readiness spectrum. Juan Sanchez is an 18-year-old who turned heads with a .341/.439/.565 line in the DSL last season. This year, he's made his way to A-ball, where he is still finding his way, hitting .245/.319/.388. Still, he has big power potential and a strong arm. At six-foot-three, 180 pounds already, third base is likely his final defensive home.

Meanwhile, Sean Keys is a 23-year-old on the cusp of being major league-ready. He spent 49 games this year in Double-A, with another 16 now coming in Triple-A, and owns a combined .282/.407/.590 with 18 homers already. Power and patience are big parts of his game, and he could ultimately be a platoon or replacement option for Burger at first, which is likely his best defensive position.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow