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Former Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen signing for divisional rival

Adam Laskaris
Adam Laskaris
|
Dec 6 2024, 6:51 pm
Former Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen signing for divisional rival
Sergio Estrada/USA TODAY Sports

If Toronto Blue Jays fans were hoping to see Danny Jansen at the Rogers Centre next season, they’ll likely get their wish.

There’s just one caveat: he’ll be playing for a rival team.

According to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, Jansen appears to be calling the Rays organization home for next season.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan described the contract as a “one-year, $8.5 million contract that includes a mutual option for a second season.”

The Rays will be Jansen’s third MLB franchise, all of which have been in the American League East.

Jansen had spent his entire MLB career in Toronto before a midseason trade from the Blue Jays to the Boston Red Sox last year.

He batted .222 with 314 hits, 71 homers, 214 RBIs and 202 runs scored in 470 games for the Blue Jays in his career, spanning the course of seven seasons after making his MLB debut in 2018.

Interestingly, Jansen might end up never playing a true home game for the Rays, even if he sticks around for both contract years.

The Rays’ home stadium, Tropicana Field, saw its roof devastated by a hurricane earlier this year. Hurricane Milton ripped off major sections of the fibreglass roof this past October, with the team eventually deciding that the stadium would be unfit for use for the 2025 season.

As of right now, it appears that they’ll play the majority of their home games out of George Steinbrenner Park, the home of the Tampa Yankees Single-A team and the New York Yankees spring training site in town.

May 13 will be the first chance that Jansen gets to face off against his old team, with Tampa coming to visit the Rogers Centre for a three-game set. Jansen did already have his return to the city last season with Boston, playing one game for the Red Sox on September 24.

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