Keep or Trade? The top catcher available this winter on the free-agent market is Danny Jansen.
Originally published by Chris Georges on Bluejaysnation Updated on June 6, 24.
Although they have recently produced some improved baseball, the Blue Jays are still in the bottom half of the AL East, which is always fierce. The squad would need to finish 59-41 to match the previous year’s record, which was just barely good enough to make the playoffs as a wild-card team, with a 30-32 record. Though it’s still conceivable, it seems increasingly likely that the Jays won’t be in a position to transfer some of its older players unless they heat up over the next several weeks.
The most important choice facing Toronto will probably be whether to deal or hold onto Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, their young talents. It’s possible that neither of those players will be dealt, in which case some of the team’s pending unrestricted free agents will be dealt. After examining the potential trade reward that Yusei Kikuchi could receive, let’s now examine Danny Jansen, one of the team’s most potent hitters.
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For the Blue Jays, Jansen has grown into a solid performer; his main flaw is his lack of availability. The backstop has missed several games due to minor ailments in each of the previous four seasons; in 2023, he played in the fewest games (86) during that time. But when healthy, he’s shown himself to be among the league’s top catchers, with a strong walk rate and some pop from the right side. Despite having less plate appearances than his teammates, Jansen has managed to maintain a 7.9 fWAR since 2018, which ranks him 10th among catchers in the Major Leagues, despite his defense being worse than that of colleague Alejandro Kirk. Right now, he is the second-ranked Blue Jays player this season with 1.3 fWAR.
Jansen is a future free agent, and the Elmhurst, Illinois native seems ready to profit because the free agent catching class is looking very thin. This implies that come this year’s trade deadline, Jansen will probably be among the few elite catchers available. With a reasonable $5.2 million contract through 2024, teams in need of catchers might be lining up to acquire him.
Kevin Gausman & Davis Schneider execute a great timing play pickoff, helped by the signal from Danny Jansen. pic.twitter.com/IdPxohPYkm
— Chris Black (@DownToBlack) May 18, 2024
Which begs the question: Should the Blue Jays trade Danny Jansen? The answer is unquestionably yes. Since that Jansen is the best available catching target this winter, it seems unlikely that the Jays will be able to sign him to a long-term deal. That kind of deal might be a risk given his past injuries. The team is in a good position to take advantage of the limited number of catching options and possibly earn a larger return than they might have in a different year.
Jansen may be a good fit for the Cubs and Padres, whose catching fWAR ranks them 28th and 24th in the league, respectively. The fact that Jansen is capable of playing as a designated hitter (DH) means that teams who do not need a catcher may not be the only ones interested in signing him.
The biggest possible obstacle to a settlement is the state of the spectacled backstop. The Jays should hope he stays healthy for the next two weeks so they can move and hopefully obtain a good prospect in return.
