It would be pretty cool if the Blue Jays reunited with their former catcher.

The best catcher available in free agency is none other than Danny Jansen, the former Blue Jay catcher. Jansen was drafted back in 2013 by the Blue Jays, making his debut in 2018. The 2024 season was his seventh with the big league team and was even the longest-tenured Blue Jay in the organization for a month. 
However, the Jays traded him to their American League East rivals, the Boston Red Sox, before the trade deadline, acquiring prospects Eddinson Paulino, Cutter Coffey, and Gilberto Batista. A few months later, Jansen is available once again.
Let’s take a look at Jansen in the latest Free Agency Profile.
<h2>Danny Jansen’s stats</h2>
Last season, Jansen slashed .206/.308/.348 with nine home runs in 328 plate appearances. After a good start with Toronto, he ended his final season with the team slashing .212/.303/.369 with six home runs in 228 plate appearances and a 94 wRC+ before the trade. Post-trade, Jansen slashed .190/.320/.298 with three home runs in 100 plate appearances for an 80 wRC+.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
Danny Jansen&#39;s first home run since May 20.
This has been a rough stretch for him, entering with a .404 OPS since June 1, so this one&#39;s a relief for Jansen. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlueJays?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BlueJays</a> <a href="https://t.co/0BKPRezdOL">pic.twitter.com/0BKPRezdOL</a>
&mdash; Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) <a href="https://twitter.com/KeeganMatheson/status/1811489789289594892?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This ended a rather dominant two seasons for Jansen, who slashed .242/.324/.493 with 32 home runs in 549 plate appearances for a 127 wRC+ in 2022 and 2023. For his career, Jansen is slashing .220/.308/.418 with 74 home runs in 1,708 plate appearances for a 100 wRC+ while accumulating 9.5 fWAR.
Defensively, it was a rough season for Jansen. He finished with -11 Defensive Runs Saved in 663 innings behind the plate, as well as -3 Fielding Run Value. However, Jansen was the best blocker in all of baseball, as he had 15 Blocks Above Average in 2024, ahead of Miguel Amaya, Sean Murphy, Jacob Stalling, and Adley Rutschman.
<h2>Danny Jansen’s contract outlook</h2>
<a href="https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/market-value/_/id/24590/danny-jansen">According to Sporttrac</a>, Danny Jansen’s market value sits at $4.4 million, comparable to the contracts of Andrew Knizner, Kyle Higashioka, Victor Caratini, and Max Stassi. All four of those players had an annual salary between $1.825 million and $6 million in 2024.
It is worth noting that most of those players provide better defence than Jansen, but much less power potential. Jansen will probably earn anywhere from $7 million to $15 million annually depending on how much teams value his power bat.
<h2>Is Jansen a fit for the Blue Jays?</h2>
The million-dollar question is whether Danny Jansen is a good fit for the Blue Jays.
In reality, the answer is probably no. Alejandro Kirk is one of the best defensive catchers in the league but also has potential with the bat. After Jansen returned from an early season injury, Kirk became an above-average hitter. Once Jansen was traded, Kirk hit like he did in 2022 over a two-month span.
The Blue Jays may look to add a veteran catcher to split time with Kirk, but since Jansen is the best catcher on the market, he’s likely out of Toronto’s price range. In a sense, Jansen is a fit for the Blue Jays because of his power, but he isn’t the backup catcher Toronto needs.
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As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.

It would be pretty cool if the Blue Jays reunited with their former catcher.



The best catcher available in free agency is none other than Danny Jansen, the former Blue Jay catcher. Jansen was drafted back in 2013 by the Blue Jays, making his debut in 2018. The 2024 season was his seventh with the big league team and was even the longest-tenured Blue Jay in the organization for a month. 

However, the Jays traded him to their American League East rivals, the Boston Red Sox, before the trade deadline, acquiring prospects Eddinson Paulino, Cutter Coffey, and Gilberto Batista. A few months later, Jansen is available once again.

Let’s take a look at Jansen in the latest Free Agency Profile.
<h2>Danny Jansen’s stats</h2>
Last season, Jansen slashed .206/.308/.348 with nine home runs in 328 plate appearances. After a good start with Toronto, he ended his final season with the team slashing .212/.303/.369 with six home runs in 228 plate appearances and a 94 wRC+ before the trade. Post-trade, Jansen slashed .190/.320/.298 with three home runs in 100 plate appearances for an 80 wRC+.

https://twitter.com/KeeganMatheson/status/1811489789289594892

This ended a rather dominant two seasons for Jansen, who slashed .242/.324/.493 with 32 home runs in 549 plate appearances for a 127 wRC+ in 2022 and 2023. For his career, Jansen is slashing .220/.308/.418 with 74 home runs in 1,708 plate appearances for a 100 wRC+ while accumulating 9.5 fWAR.

Defensively, it was a rough season for Jansen. He finished with -11 Defensive Runs Saved in 663 innings behind the plate, as well as -3 Fielding Run Value. However, Jansen was the best blocker in all of baseball, as he had 15 Blocks Above Average in 2024, ahead of Miguel Amaya, Sean Murphy, Jacob Stalling, and Adley Rutschman.
<h2>Danny Jansen’s contract outlook</h2>
<a href="https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/market-value/_/id/24590/danny-jansen">According to Sporttrac</a>, Danny Jansen’s market value sits at $4.4 million, comparable to the contracts of Andrew Knizner, Kyle Higashioka, Victor Caratini, and Max Stassi. All four of those players had an annual salary between $1.825 million and $6 million in 2024.

It is worth noting that most of those players provide better defence than Jansen, but much less power potential. Jansen will probably earn anywhere from $7 million to $15 million annually depending on how much teams value his power bat.
<h2>Is Jansen a fit for the Blue Jays?</h2>
The million-dollar question is whether Danny Jansen is a good fit for the Blue Jays.

In reality, the answer is probably no. Alejandro Kirk is one of the best defensive catchers in the league but also has potential with the bat. After Jansen returned from an early season injury, Kirk became an above-average hitter. Once Jansen was traded, Kirk hit like he did in 2022 over a two-month span.

The Blue Jays may look to add a veteran catcher to split time with Kirk, but since Jansen is the best catcher on the market, he’s likely out of Toronto’s price range. In a sense, Jansen is a fit for the Blue Jays because of his power, but he isn’t the backup catcher Toronto needs.

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As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.

Free Agent Profile: Former Blue Jay Danny Jansen is the best catcher available in free agency

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