After 10 seasons with the Rays, Kevin Kiermaier is joining a new team. The center fielder has agreed to a deal with the Blue Jays, sources told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand and Juan Toribio on Saturday. The club has not confirmed.
Kiermaier became a free agent for the first time in his career when the Rays declined his $13 million club option for 2023, instead paying him a $2.5 million buyout. The 32-year-old had been an institution in Tampa Bay. The organization originally selected him in the 31st round of the 2010 Draft out of Parkland (Ill.) College and brought him to the Majors at the end of the 2013 season.
Over 10 seasons with the Rays, Kiermaier won three Gold Glove Awards and a Platinum Glove Award for his sterling outfield defense and participated in four playoff runs. (He batted .368 with two home runs in the 2020 World Series loss to the Dodgers). Kiermaier ranks fifth in Rays history in games (914) and runs scored (410), sixth in hits (756) and doubles (140), third in stolen bases (112) and second in triples (51).
However, 2022 was a tough season for Kiermaier, who dealt with left hip injuries that limited him to 63 games and required season-ending surgery in early August. When he was in the lineup, Kiermaier batted .228/.281/.369 (89 OPS+) with seven homers, 22 RBIs and six steals.
On the plus side, Kiermaier retained his plus speed, ranking in the 93rd percentile in sprint speed. Those wheels have served Kiermaier well over the course of his career. He ranks 12th in MLB in FanGraphs’ baserunning value metric since 2014 and has long been one of the game’s top defensive center fielders. Statcast’s Outs Above Average goes back to 2016, and in that time, Kiermaier’s plus-71 OAA ranks sixth among all players and first among outfielders. While Kiermaier had plus-1 OAA in limited playing time in 2022, he was at plus-12 the year before.
While he was above average at the plate over his first four full seasons, Kiermaier has not been a significant offensive contributor over the past five. Since 2018, he owns an overall line of .232/.296/.382 (88 OPS+) with 35 homers.
.