Colorado Rockies Owner Dick Monfort Says Losing DJ LeMahieu Was A Mistake And Confirms What The Yankees Know

A classic joke among fans when one player leaves his former team and significantly thrives with his new team is something along the lines of “why can’t (my team) get guys like that?

For the Yankees and Rockies that guy is DJ LeMahieu and he was in the news Tuesday because his name was mentioned at some point during the conference call Rockies owner Dick Monfort held when explaining his trading star third baseman Nolan Arenado to the St. Louis Cardinals in a deal that became official on Monday.

“In hindsight, losing DJ was a big deal,” Monfort said. “I wish there was a way we could keep DJ. We wish we could redo that. I know DJ wanted to stay a Rockie. His agent said that.

No kidding and these days local media is calling for Monfort to sell the team while the Yankees enjoy the benefits of his mistake in not retaining LeMahieu.

For the backstory here, LeMahieu won the NL batting title in 2016 by hitting .348 and edging out newly retired former Met Daniel Murphy, who was in his first season with the Washington Nationals.

LeMahieu was not retained after the 2018 season when he batted .276, a figure that was the second-lowest of his career low. It also was a mark he posted after only playing 128 games due to a thumb injury and in a funny coincidence, Murphy was who the Rockies signed in free agency to replace LeMahieu.

By Jan. 2019, the Yankees pounced, signing him to a two-year, $24 million deal at a time when some fans were hoping the big signing would be Manny Machado. It was an understated move that LeMahieu was introduced via conference call while Jed Lowrie — who would appear in seven hitless at-bats in two mysterious seasons filled with injuries – was bestowed the press conference introduction.

By now, the entire baseball world knows LeMahieu was underpaid, especially after his slash line of .336/.386/.536 with 36 homers and 129 RBIs.  The Yankees were simply smart in making the move and benefiting from another team which made no effort to keep an All-Star infielder. It was what Monfort’s “by the way” comment reinforced and it was made less than a week after the Yankees officially retained LeMahieu by signing him to a six-year, $90 million deal.

It was a contract that was signed after some nervousness amongst fans that the infielder would bolt but it never seemed that he would be anywhere else but the Yankees.

“It’s no secret that I wanted to return to the Yankees,” LeMahieu said last week. “I wanted to be back in New York. It was frustrating at times because it took so long, but I’m just so excited to be back. That’s what I wanted from the beginning. It’s what I wanted all along. I’m just happy it all worked out.”

As notable as the Yankee moves are to let Masahiro Tanaka return to Japan and replace him with Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon, the move to retain LeMahieu was the most significant transaction. It was a fact that was amplified by Luke Voit, who was among those being honored Tuesday at the Thurman Munson Award ceremony to benefit AHRC New York Foundation, an organization that aids people with intellectual and physical disabilities.

“We got The Machine back, so life is good,” Voit told reporters. “He’s a great teammate. A great leader. I hope he’s in New York the rest of his career. He’s the best hitter in baseball and a table setter for us.”

And the latest player to benefit a new team after his old team bungles things poorly.