After 12 seasons with the Giants Brandon belt is on his way to Toronto. He has agreed a one-year, $9.3 million deal with the Blue Jays for the 2023 season. The Excel Sports Management client has reportedly already passed his physical exam. The Jays are expected to officially announce the signing on Tuesday. At that point, they must make a corresponding 40-man squad move.
Belt was a fifth-round pick by San Francisco in 2009 and reached the majors two seasons later. He played in 63 games as a rookie and took the primary first base job in his sophomore season. Belt was a major contributor to the 2012 San Francisco World Series team, hitting .275/.360/.421 in 145 games. Injuries limited him to 61 regular-season contests during the 2014 season, but he was healthy enough to contribute to San Francisco’s third title in five years during the playoffs.
Belt struggled with intermittent injury problems in the years to come. Healthy, he was a consistently productive offensive player. While San Francisco’s pitcher-friendly home stadium pushed his power over the fence, he was a yearly threat for more than 30 doubles and put up huge numbers on base thanks to massive walk rates. At the start of the 2016 season, the Giants provided Belt with a $72.8 million extension that kept him off the open market during the 2021 campaign. He followed with a .275/.394/.474, evidenced by 655 trips to the plate, earning his only All-Star nod of his career in the process.
The Texan product saw its production ease off a bit over the next few seasons, remaining at slightly above-average levels through 2019. He bounced back tremendously in 2020, posting a .309/.425/.591 clip to secure some Down Ballot MVP endorsement during the truncated season. He continued to rake in the following season but saw that year frequently interrupted by injuries. Belt lost time to a left oblique strain and right knee pain, but managed a .274/.378/.597 performance while breaking his previous career mark of 29 home runs in just 97 games. Unfortunately, towards the end of the season, a faulty pitch broke his left thumb and he was unable to participate in the San Francisco playoff heat.
Prior to Belt’s first free hand trip, the Giants presented him with a qualifying offer of $18.9 million. He accepted and returned to the Bay Area for another season. Injuries again proved to be problematic and this time it seemed to have a detrimental effect on his performance even when he did manage to take the field. Belt had a trio of IL appearances last season and while the former was a very brief absence related to COVID-19, the latter two were more concerning. He lost about three weeks between May and June due to inflammation in his bulky right knee, which recurred in mid-August.
After his second knee-related IL placement, the veteran decided to call things aside and have surgery at the end of the season. It was the third surgical procedure he had undergone on this knee. Belt acknowledged that if the recovery hadn’t gone well, he might consider retiring, but he told reporters a few weeks later that he felt revived by the surgery.
The injuries sent him onto the open market before his campaign was arguably past its worst season at the age of 35. He hit .213/.326/.350 through 298 trips to the plate. Belt was still running at an excellent clip of 12.4% but saw its power production slow down. He hit eight homers and posted a career-low .138 ISO (slugging minus batting average). While still slightly better than average, Belt’s hard contact rate of 38.5% was well below its 2020-21 level.
Toronto clearly believe the reduced production was a symptom of the injuries, which the club can hope will no longer be as a concern following last summer’s surgery. If Belt can regain his former form, he would add a quality left-handed racquet to a predominantly right-handed lineup. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will be the daily first baseman. Danny Jansen and Alejandro Kirk Figure to get a decent number of designated hitters at bats when the other in the lineup is at the catcher. Everyone in this group hits from the right side, so Belt adds some balance to the mix. Neither of these players are strictly relegated to the short side of a platoon by Belt, but he does add another high-profile offensive option for skipper John Schneider.
It’s a short-term deal but a significant commitment for the club. Adding Belt’s $9.3 million salary brings Toronto’s projected 2023 payroll just over $212 million as calculated by Roster Resource. That surpasses last year’s approximate pledge of $171 million, which was a franchise record. Specifically, it positions the Jays as likely luxury taxpayers for the first time in franchise history. According to Roster Resource, the organization has approximately $242 million in tax obligations. Having entered the night within a rounding error of the $233 million base threshold, they are pushing well beyond it to bring more offensive aid.
A team’s CBT number is officially tabulated at the end of the season, so the front office could theoretically be looking for ways to dip back under the line. That seems unlikely as the Jays are in contention for what will hopefully be their first AL East title in eight years. Toronto has one of the best lineups in the league but could still seek help at the back of the rotation or in the bullpen over the next few months.
The Blue Jays pay 20% tax on their first $20 million in CBT surplus. As a result of this signing, they are expected to incur around $1.84 million in fees, meaning their actual obligation to bring in Belt is closer to $11 million. If they exceed $253 million, they will be taxed at a rate of 30% on any additional overages. Exceeding $273 million would result in further penalties.
San Francisco will continue without a last remaining player from its excellent run over the first half of the last decade. Brandon Crawford is the only player from the 2014 team who is still a Giant. For a long time it had looked as if the club would go in this direction this offseason LaMonte Wade Jr. and JD Davis It probably looks like they share the first few base reps.
Belt was one of the finest first basemen still available on the open market. The free agent class at the position is now led by Trey Mancini and Julia Gurrielduring Luke Voit and Miguel Sano are available as bounceback targets for clubs wanting to throw a power bat.
Susanne Schlusser of Chronicle of San Francisco was the first to report that Belt and the Blue Jays had agreed to a one-year deal that would be announced Tuesday and that Belt had already passed his investigation. Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath was the first with the $9.3 million guarantee.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.