The Toronto Blue Jays have pulled off a trade, bringing in a big-time batter for next season.
The team is getting Andrés Giménez from the Cleveland Guardians, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The 26-year-old second baseman has put up strong numbers in his MLB career thus far.
Giménez has played five seasons for the Guardians and New York Mets. He has a .261 batting average, 505 hits, 49 home runs, 222 RBIs, 251 runs scored, and has won three Gold Glove awards.
He was also an All-Star in 2022 when he was just 23 years old, finishing that season with a career-high 17 home runs and 69 RBIs.
BREAKING: The Toronto Blue Jays are finalizing a trade to acquire three-time Gold Glove-winning second baseman Andrés Giménez from the Cleveland Guardians, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 10, 2024
The Blue Jays are also getting reliever Nick Sandlin but losing infielder Spencer Horwitz, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.
Sandlin is 27 years old and pitched 57.2 innings over 68 games with the Guardians last year.
Heading the other way, the 27-year-old Horwitz hit 12 home runs with the Blue Jays in 2024 and batted .265.
Let’s try this again: Andres Giménez and reliever Nick Sandlin going to Blue Jays. 1B/2B Spencer Horwitz part of return for Guardians. Apologies.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 10, 2024
The Venezuelan Giménez has three straight seasons with a Gold Glove award and at least 60 RBIs. He’ll help solidify the middle of the infield and shore up the defence, as the club was 11th in the American League last year in runs-allowed-per-game.
The Blue Jays finished last in the AL East this past season and are looking to improve upon that. The trade for Giménez is their second major addition of the day, as they also signed Yimi Garcia just a few hours ago.
Giménez is under contract through the 2029 MLB season. His salary will be just over $10.5 million this upcoming year before rising to just over $15.5 million in 2026. It will then jump one last time to over $23 million for the next three seasons. His contract also includes a club option for 2030.
The Blue Jays do have Will Wagner, who can play second base, so it’s possible they move Giménez to another infield spot, or the two battle it out for the starting position.