Ryan Goins signs a minor-league deal with the Kansas City Royals

The Ryan Goins era in Toronto is officially over. The utility player, much to the disappointment of Marcus Stroman, was non-tendered back in December, and now he’s inked a minor-league deal with the Kansas City Royals.

I thought there was a chance that Goins would ink a minor-league deal with the Blue Jays and that he would start the season with Triple-A Buffalo, serving as organizational depth. But the two sides have moved on and it appears we’ll never see Goins in a Blue Jays jersey again.

Instead, he’ll rock a Royals jersey. And, as we all remember, Goins is low-key a Royals legend, as he played a big role in Kansas City’s World Series win with that dropped ball — *gets pushed out of helicopter*

Goins was an interesting player on the Jays the past few years, being one of those guys who divided the fanbase. Some, like Jerry Howarth, had an affinity for Goins and his excellent infield glove despite the fact he couldn’t hit worth a lick. Others, well, most of us, were disturbed at the idea of him consistently coming up to bat.

Last season, with Troy Tulowitzki and Devon Travis missing a good chunk of the season, Goins appeared in a career-high 143 games. He had a .634 OPS in 459 plate appearances, putting together shockingly good numbers with runners in scoring position that gave the “he’s actually good!” crowd more ammunition.

But, all told, Goins was worth -0.8 wins above replacement in 2017, which was a slight improvement on the -1.4 wins he was worth in 2016.

Goins made his debut with the Jays as a September call-up during the disaster that was the 2013 season. He had his best season in 2015, performing as a very effective replacement at second base after Devon Travis went down with an injury. In 2015, he was worth 1.7 wins and posted a .672 OPS with excellent defence.

He made his way into a lot of memorable moments as a Blue Jay, like…

An inning of scoreless relief during the marathon game on Canada Day in 2016!

The hidden ball trick in 2017!

Talking shit about the Rogers Canada jerseys!

A walk-off homer against Cleveland during the playoff run in 2015!

And, of course, an amazing, emotional celebration when he scored from third on Jose Bautista’s legendary home run against the Rangers in 2015.

Ryan Goins, you weren’t perfect, but you were a Blue Jay. And you’ll always be a Blue Jay. Best of luck in the future!