JT Realmuto returns to Philadelphia anyway. The star catcher and the Phillies agree on a five-year $ 115.5 million deal, a source told MLB.com Tuesday. The club has not confirmed the agreement.
JT Realmuto returns to Philadelphia anyway. The Star Catcher and the Phillies have agreed on a five-year $ 115.5 million deal, a source told MLB.com Tuesday. The club has not confirmed the agreement.
The contract as reported has the highest mean annual value (AAV) for a catcher in MLB history of $ 23.1 million, surpassing the $ 23 million AAV in Joe Mauer’s contract extension with the Twins in 2010. Realmuto’s deal also sets a new record for a free agent contract for a catcher, surpassing Brian McCann’s $ 85 million pact with the Yankees in 2013.
The deal includes a salary of $ 20 million this year, but deferred by $ 10 million, to be paid in installments of $ 5 million in 2026 and ’27, and a salary of $ 23.875 million per year from 2022-25. According to a source, a relocation fee of $ 1 million is included in case Realmuto trades.
One of the best backstops in the game, Realmuto was a hot commodity in free agency. In 2019, his first season with the Phillies after a Miami blockbuster, he won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Award. In ’20 he posted the best offensive figures of his career with 123 OPS + and 11 home runs in 195 at bats, all while controlling the running game and just about everyone in the Majors.
Realmuto turned down the Phillies’ $ 18.9 million qualifying offer and chose to test the open market for the first time in his career. After being called up by the Marlins in the third round of the 2010 Draft, he spent the first five years of his career in Miami before being sent to Philadelphia in a package that included right-handed Sixto Sánchez.
The 29-year old catcher is a .278-hitter in his career with a 111 OPS +, and he is a two-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger winner. From 2017-19, Realmuto’s ranked 15.0 Wins over replacement, per FanGraphs, at first place among catchers and 13th among all position players.
Todd Zolecki has covered the Phillies since 2003, and for MLB.com since 2009. Follow him Twitter and Facebook.