This year more than ever, we are reluctant to predict anything that might happen in the offseason. The industry is bracing for a brutal free agent market after a summer of bleeding cash -- and, in case the market needs another huge variable, one of the New York teams will be sold.

Even the wealthy clubs, leveraged by debt and accruing little revenue, might sit out the hot stove season. As SNY reported this week, there might not even be Winter Meetings for the first time since 1901.

Any models for what a player might be worth under normal circumstances -- whether it’s James Paxton, J.T. Realmuto or George Springer or anyone -- will be useless.

With all that said, here’s a prediction we feel pretty confident about: The Yankees will allocate whatever resources they need to muster in order to sign DJ LeMahieu to a deal well above the $12 million average annual value he’s making on his current two-year contract, and at more than the two years they gave him last time.

Our reasoning is simple: The two sides like each other too much to part ways. LeMahieu, a former batting champion, agreed to join the Yankees before last season even after the team couldn’t promise him a regular position. He has since fit like a Core Four-style glove.

People connected to the team say that LeMahieu is even more essential to the clubhouse culture than his quiet persona might suggest. Leading by example with his work ethic and style of play -- and speaking up when necessary -- LeMahieu has emerged along with Brett Gardner and Aaron Judge as one of the stronger player voices under manager Aaron Boone.

He’s said to be funnier and more outgoing (well, outgoing might be a stretch) behind closed doors than he is with the media. He is also, you might have noticed, one of the best hitters on the planet.

After playing under a below-market deal for two seasons, LeMahieu will have the right to expect more years and dollars. Here’s predicting that he remains with the Yankees for years to come.

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