TORONTO -- Catcher Alejandro Kirk and the Blue Jays on Tuesday agreed to a five-year, $58 million extension through the 2030 season, locking up one of Toronto¡¯s most important players.
Kirk is due to make $4.6 million this season, so the deal will buy out his final year of arbitration (¡¯26) and the four seasons that follow.
Kirk will receive a $6 million signing bonus and there is no deferred money, a source told MLB.com¡¯s Mark Feinsand.
¡°This was a special moment. A very special moment with my family, but especially my daughter,¡± Kirk said through a club interpreter. ¡°My parents, too. This was something very very special.¡±
While the spotlight has been stuck on Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and his pending free agency all spring -- with Bo Bichette close behind -- Kirk represented the next wave of business for the Blue Jays as he was scheduled to become a free agent following the 2026 season. After dealing former No. 1 prospect Gabriel Moreno to the D-backs prior to last season and losing Danny Jansen via free agency, Kirk quickly became crucial to the Blue Jays¡¯ success with little catching depth behind him.
¡°He¡¯s turned himself into an elite catcher,¡± said manager John Schneider. ¡°What we¡¯re seeing offensively is what we had hoped for. This has been a tandem job for many years and he really took to the fact it was going to be his this offseason, coming down here and getting his work in, getting in good shape. It¡¯s all paid off. He¡¯s a guy we have all the confidence in the world in. He has a slow heartbeat in every situation. Sometimes, you wonder if he¡¯s even awake back there, which is a compliment to a catcher, I think. I¡¯m just happy for him and for us that it¡¯s a good fit, and I¡¯m happy for his family, too.¡±
The 26-year-old has been one of the most impressive players in camp, too. He¡¯s suddenly driving the ball more consistently after a 2024 season that felt like a down year at the dish, and new hitting coach David Popkins immediately identified him as a high-upside project when he joined the organization.
¡°When he talked to Ross [Atkins], Kirk was the first guy where he said, ¡®We can really do some things here,¡¯¡± said club president and CEO Mark Shapiro earlier this week. ¡°I mentioned Bo, but Kirk is probably No. 2 for me in terms of guys I¡¯m most excited to see play this year. I feel like he¡¯s going to have a really good year.¡±
Kirk hit .253 with a .678 OPS last season, but there¡¯s a huge level of internal belief that he can get back to the offensive force he was in 2022, when he won a Silver Slugger Award by hitting .285 with 14 home runs and a .787 OPS. At times through Kirk¡¯s tenure, he¡¯s been the one player outside of Guerrero the Blue Jays want at the plate with a runner on third base and less than two outs. His contact rate and plate approach have always been excellent, but when he¡¯s driving the ball again, that¡¯s when Kirk becomes dangerous.
¡°Kirky has elite mental attributes. Elite,¡± Shapiro said. ¡°He slows the game down as well as anybody I¡¯ve seen. He reminds me of other great players I¡¯ve seen. There¡¯s almost nobody I can imagine I¡¯d want to catch a [wicked] slider in the ninth inning with the tying run on third base, or be up at the plate. He¡¯s just going to be [steady].¡±
He¡¯s also developed into a catcher Toronto¡¯s pitchers absolutely love throwing to. Kirk¡¯s pitch framing and blocking don¡¯t show up in each night¡¯s box score in big, obvious ways, but those traits add up over the course of a season and the trust he¡¯s earned from this veteran pitching staff speaks volumes.
Under the front office led by Shapiro and Atkins, the Blue Jays have extended only Randal Grichuk and Jos¨¦ Berr¨ªos in recent years, making Kirk the third to join the club. Obviously, everyone involved would love to see a fourth and fifth name added to that list in Guerrero and Bichette, but it¡¯s looking more and more like both will head to free agency as part of this long process. Regardless of how those situations play out long term and regardless of what this next ¡°era¡± of Blue Jays baseball looks like, Kirk gives the organization another piece to build around in ¡¯26 and beyond.