The Blue Jays are putting defence first again with the signing of Kevin Kiermaier
The Blue Jays’ search for a big bat apparently will no longer involve a full-time outfielder after the club opted to bring back veteran Kevin Kiermaier on a one-year deal Tuesday.
Kiermaier, a four-time Gold Glove winner, agreed to a contract worth $10.5 million (U.S.) plus incentives. The Jays have yet to officially announce the move, which was first reported by MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand and has since been confirmed by the Star.
The decision to re-sign Kiermaier appears to indicate the Jays are content to run it back with their starting outfield from 2023. Kiermaier becomes the obvious candidate to start in centre, with Daulton Varsho sticking in left and George Springer remaining in right.
The Jays went with the same alignment throughout much of 2023 as they relied on pitching and defence to remain competitive. Their outfield was first in the majors with 45 defensive runs saved and second with 21 outs above average. The elite fielding helped the Jays to a 3.78 team ERA, fourth in the majors.
The issue is that same group was below average with the bat. Jays outfielders combined to post 95 weighted runs created plus, which was 21st, and their .707 on-base plus slugging percentage was a disappointing 23rd. Only three teams — the Chicago White Sox, Washington and Cleveland — received fewer home runs from the outfield.
Kiermaier’s bat was the best of the three, but it was believed the Jays would let him walk in free agency. The 33-year-old also appeared to feel the same when speaking in the past tense about the Jays during multiple end-of-season interviews.
That city has got a special place in my heart and, man, I’m going to miss it a ton,” Kiermaier said during an appearance on colleague Mike Wilner’s “Deep Left Field” podcast in November.
The Jays appeared to have a ready-made replacement for Kiermaier in Varsho, who covers ground in centre just as well. Despite playing approximately half as many games at the position, the 27-year-old finished tied with Kiermaier at 18 defensive runs saved and he trailed in outs above average by just three.
The Blue Jays’ search for a big bat apparently will no longer involve a full-time outfielder after the club opted to bring back veteran Kevin Kiermaier on a one-year deal Tuesday.
Kiermaier, a four-time Gold Glove winner, agreed to a contract worth $10.5 million (U.S.) plus incentives. The Jays have yet to officially announce the move, which was first reported by MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand and has since been confirmed by the Star.
The decision to re-sign Kiermaier appears to indicate the Jays are content to run it back with their starting outfield from 2023. Kiermaier becomes the obvious candidate to start in centre, with Daulton Varsho sticking in left and George Springer remaining in right.
The Jays went with the same alignment throughout much of 2023 as they relied on pitching and defence to remain competitive. Their outfield was first in the majors with 45 defensive runs saved and second with 21 outs above average. The elite fielding helped the Jays to a 3.78 team ERA, fourth in the majors.
The issue is that same group was below average with the bat. Jays outfielders combined to post 95 weighted runs created plus, which was 21st, and their .707 on-base plus slugging percentage was a disappointing 23rd. Only three teams — the Chicago White Sox, Washington and Cleveland — received fewer home runs from the outfield.
Kiermaier’s bat was the best of the three, but it was believed the Jays would let him walk in free agency. The 33-year-old also appeared to feel the same when speaking in the past tense about the Jays during multiple end-of-season interviews.
“That city has got a special place in my heart and, man, I’m going to miss it a ton,” Kiermaier said during an appearance on colleague Mike Wilner’s “Deep Left Field” podcast in November.
The Jays appeared to have a ready-made replacement for Kiermaier in Varsho, who covers ground in centre just as well. Despite playing approximately half as many games at the position, the 27-year-old finished tied with Kiermaier at 18 defensive runs saved and he trailed in outs above average by just
Varsho possesses a plus glove in left, too, but moving him to centre would have allowed the Jays to add a pair of big bats. Now, instead of bringing in a full-time left fielder and a designated hitter, the Jays figure to add just one while also potentially looking to plug holes at second and third base.
The return of Kiermaier doesn’t eliminate the possibility of the Jays signing top free agent Cody Bellinger, but it certainly makes an agreement less likely. Bellinger could move around all three outfield spots while also filling in for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first, but he would be stuck at DH in the “A” lineup.
The Jays are unlikely to commit more than $200 million to a player filling that role. If his reported asking price drops significantly, Bellinger could be a fit but a reunion with the Cubs seems to be the logical choice.
more realistic option for the Jays would be signing someone like Jorge Soler, who can start in the outfield against lefties and take the rest of his at-bats as a DH. After hitting 36 homers with 75 RBIs for the Marlins, Soler has been projected by MLBTradeRumors to earn three years and $45 million on his next deal. Other DH candidates include J.D. Martinez and Rhys Hoskins.
On the surface, it’s difficult to criticize the potential value of Kiermaier’s new deal. The 11-year veteran was projected to get two years and $26 million at the start of the off-season and he ended up settling for less than half of that. Based on his elite fielding alone, Kiermaier will be worth the investment, provided the man who has appeared in more than 100 games just three times since 2016 stays healthy.
The awkward fit is a much different story. For as good as Kiermaier played in 2023, his return doesn’t make sense if it means Varsho remains in left and the Jays are down a spot to add another impact bat. That should be an issue for a team that was tied for 14th with an underwhelming 746 runs in 2023 and needs to improve to keep pace in the always competitive AL East.
The signing would be more reasonable if Kiermaier was expected to come off the bench. That didn’t seem likely after Kiermaier slashed .265/.322/.419 in arguably his best season since 2017 and it seems even less likely following the substantial financial guarantee. Teams don’t often make it a habit to sign reserves for $10.5 million plus incentives.
