The Dodgers don’t want Carlos Correa because of the Astros scandal.
According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the 2017 signature-stealing scandal is a factor in why the Los Angeles Dodgers won’t pursue free agent Carlos Correa.
Winter meetings wrapped up on Wednesday, Dec. 7, and the MLB market is in full swing. On the final day, some big deals were reported, including Aaron Judge staying with the New York Yankees and wide receiver Willson Contreras moving to the St. Louis Cardinals. When it comes to some of the biggest names available, one of them is Carlos Correa.
When it comes to teams that need a shortstop, the Los Angeles Dodgers come to mind. After all, they lost Trea Turner to the Philadelphia Phillies on an 11-year, $300 million contract. Would the Dodgers pivot to sign a shortstop like Correa?
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Dodgers are not pursuing Correa « partly because they are concerned that a significant portion of their fanbase will not welcome this move. » This is because, as Rosenthal puts it, Correa was « the most outspoken member » of the 2017 Houston Astros team that was convicted of illegal sign theft. That Astros team, of course, beat the Dodgers in that year’s World Series.
The Dodgers aren’t suing Carlos Correa over the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.
Prior to the 2020 season, when the league released its findings on the Houston backboard-stealing scandal, Correa was the team’s most combative member. He publicly defended himself against those who said his title of world champion was not legitimate. He notably went after then-Dodgers outfielder Cody Bellinger after he called the Astros’ penalty ‘weak’ and claimed Jose Altuve stole the AL’s 2017 Most Valuable Player award from Judge.
There’s also another reason, unrelated to the Astros, why they won’t pursue Correa or any other top free agent. Rosenthal says the Dodgers are waiting to see if MLB will uphold pitcher Trevor Bauer’s two-year suspension for violating their domestic violence and sexual assault policy. Indeed, the team does not know if it will have to pay Bauer back wages.
Correa is one of the best free agents available. He is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he recorded a .291 batting average, .366 on-base percentage, .467 slashing percentage, 22 home runs, 64 RBIs, 70 runs scored and 152 strikes.
For those wondering if the Dodgers were going to try to make up for the loss of Turner with Correa, that’s not the case.
MLB Insider: How are the Dodgers reacting after losing Turner and Verlander?
Read now >>
