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Marcus Semien had a career year in 2021, slugging 45 homers and swiping 15 bags as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays. Here’s what he’s getting for his efforts:
Infielder Marcus Semien and the Texas Rangers are in agreement on a seven-year contract, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN. @ByRobertMurray had the sides close.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 28, 2021
The move to a Texas ball park and team offense that are both worse than Toronto is something of a hit to Semien’s value. The Rangers probably won this battle of free agency by offering a seventh year to Semien, who is already 31 years old. Don’t believe me? Peep the teams interested:
At this point, the Yankees, Rangers, Dodgers, Giants, Blue Jays, White Sox, Cubs, Tigers, Astros and Mariners have been connected to Marcus Semien. One-third of the league. Immense market.
— Joe Doyle (@JoeDoyleMiLB) November 22, 2021
But we don’t care about any of that, do we? He’ll likely qualify at both your middle infield slots next year, and he’ll offer 25+ homer pop and 10+ steals. He should also safely occupy one of the top two spots in the Texas lineup, so any dropoff in quality offense will hopefully be mitigated somewhat by volume.