CARLSBAD, Calif. — Generally the Yankees are successful when they are motivated buyers.

They enter the competition early, transparently make their quest known and then accept the terms at the top of the market. Think how they pursued Gerrit Cole, for example.

Therefore, I would not bet against them solving their shortstop need with an elite (also expensive) solution. But there also are ways all those avenues close.

The Dodgers are interested in retaining Corey Seager and have the advantage of his already being comfortable with them. The Rangers might be the most motivated buyers in the industry (if not the Mariners) and have shown an inclination to spend big on multiple pieces this winter. Seager is on their radar, perhaps atop their wish list.

In all ways except not being a lefty hitter like Seager, Carlos Correa fits what the Yankees need — superb defense, postseason-proven, all-around excellence on offense. But regardless of what general manager Brian Cashman says publicly, the Yankees have not forgiven or forgotten the sign-stealing sins of the 2017 Astros, for which Correa played. There also are concerns about the state of Correa’s back and whether there are too many personality comparisons to Alex Rodriguez.

Are the Yankees convinced Marcus Semien is still a shortstop and that at 31 he is worth the outlay necessary to sign him? The age matters because one of Semien’s selling points is durability. Will that continue? For example, 2016 was the first full season for both Correa and Seager, who both have battled injuries. Semien has played 127 more games than Correa the past six seasons and 171 more than Seager.

Javy Baez and Trevor Story have strengths, but would the swing-and-miss righties replicate too much of a Yankees weakness to dabble in them at high prices?

So what if this is the Yankees’ reality? What if they can’t solve their shortstop dilemma with a significant player?

Could they go stopgap at the position, with defense as the priority, by signing someone such as Andrelton Simmons, whose 57 OPS-plus this year was the third worst since 2016 (minimum 450 plate appearances)? The idea would be to wait and see if a top prospect such as Oswald Peraza or Anthony Volpe is ready as the 2022 season unwinds, and then bulk up elsewhere.

Could the Yankees sign outfielder Starling Marte and trade for Oakland first baseman Matt Olson? In this imagining, DJ LeMahieu would become the third baseman, Gleyber Torres the second baseman and Gio Urshela a utilityman getting at least one start a week at second, short and third. Joey Gallo would be traded, Aaron Hicks would move to left with either Miguel Andujar or Clint Frazier retained as his backup, while Gary Sanchez would be removed and the Yankees would team Kyle Higashioka with a Manny Piña type.

The hope would be to have an overall better defensive team with this lineup: LeMahieu, Aaron Judge, Olson, Giancarlo Stanton, Marte, Hicks, Torres, catcher and the shortstop.

Two items are worrisome with Marte: 1. He played at 32 last year and performed well enough that he could command a four-year contract through age 36. 2. His batting average on balls in play was second-highest among qualified hitters, suggesting some artificiality to his .310 batting average.

Marte, though, showed no signs of aging last year, stealing 47 bases in 52 tries while performing well in center. In more standard years for average with balls in play from 2018-20, Marte still hit .285 with an .808 OPS. He can hit for average, run, field and provide energy — all qualities the Yankees need. His downside: He is not a left-handed hitter.

Olson is. He also is part of the flock of Athletics whose rising salaries make them available. GM David Forst conceded this is “the cycle” Oakland lives under and with which the club’s veteran executives are familiar — a period in which the team will contend then reload, he said, until a new stadium potentially can provide greater financial heft.

Olson, coming off his best season, is arguably the most attractive for-sale item. He not only hit for power (39 homers) last season, but also cut his strikeout rate in half while keeping his walk total high.

He will turn 28 in March and has two years of team control before free agency. The line to obtain Olson will be long, so the price will be steep. Austin Wells, a lefty-hitting catcher who might have to move to first base, is one of the Yankees’ best prospects and has hitting skills the A’s have long valued. Could the Yankees team him with, say, prospects they get in return for Gallo to form a package for Olson? It probably would take more.

It also would take the Yankees truly believing in Peraza or Volpe. That they have not been overhyped, but will be real major league shortstops by no later than 2023. That would allow them to more easily glide to a Plan B if the free-agent shortstop market does not break right for them.