According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, free agent Curtis Granderson has signed a one-year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. The contract is worth $5 million for next season. The signing bolsters the Toronto outfield, which always seemed as though it was missing a piece.
Free-agent outfielder Curtis Granderson in agreement with #BlueJays on one-year, $5M contract, sources tell The Athletic. Deal also includes incentives and is pending a physical.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 16, 2018
Curtis Granderson Signs with the Toronto Blue Jays
The veteran Granderson, who will turn 37 in March, played 147 games in 2017 – 111 with the New York Mets and 38 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Acquiring Granderson helped spur a deep playoff run by the Dodgers. Granderson, however, struggled in the postseason, going 1/15 with eight strikeouts in the first two rounds. This lack of performance kept him off of the World Series roster. Granderson hit a career-worst .212 in 2017, with an OPS of .775. However, he still managed to rack up 28 home runs and 64 RBI during the 2017 season. Granderson spent the previous three seasons with the Mets, and posted an MVP-candidate season in 2015 with 26 home runs, 70 RBI (typically from the leadoff spot), and 11 stolen bases.
Granderson is a utility outfielder from Blue Island, Illinois. The University of Illinois at Chicago prospect was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in 2004, and made his major league debut that September.
Curtis Granderson is a three-time All-Star. He added a Silver Slugger Award to his name and led the American League in RBI in 2011. You know what you are getting with a player like Granderson: consistency. He has played over 140 games in 10 of his 14 seasons, and always brings a superior level of defense. Granderson has posted a .993 fielding percentage over his 14-season career. He is also one of the better people in baseball; he won the Roberto Clemente Award in 2016.
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