Matt Chapman signs three-year, $54 million deal with San Francisco Giants

The contract that Chapman wound up signing is obviously well below what he and agent Scott Boras came into the off-season looking for, as the four-time Gold Glove winner for third base was rumoured to be seeking north of $150 million. It also falls well shy of the multi-year, $100 million-plus deal the Blue Jays reportedly offered Chapman as a contract extension during the season.

But like the deal that Cody Bellinger signed with the Chicago Cubs last week, Chapman’s contract features opt-outs after the first two seasons. He’s set to be paid $20 million in 2024, $18 million in 2025, and $16 million in 2026, and will have the ability to seek a different salary if he has a strong performance.

Since the Blue Jays issued Chapman a qualifying offer, the team will get a compensatory draft pick following the completion of the fourth round of the 2024 MLB draft. The Giants, meanwhile, have to give up their second-round draft pick at No. 51 overall and $500,000 in International Bonus Pool money to sign Chapman.

The Blue Jays acquired Chapman from the Oakland A’s just ahead of the 2022 season. His elite glove at third base came as advertised but Chapman’s bat was inconsistent during his time in Toronto. Over two seasons with the club, Chapman slashed a .234/.327/.429 line with 44 home runs and 66 doubles, His .756 OPS as a Blue Jay was considerably lower than the .808 mark he had over his five seasons in Oakland, with the decrease coming due mostly to a drop in slugging percentage.

That said, despite the up-and-down performance offensively over the past two years, Chapman was still worth 7.7 wins above replacement for the Blue Jays, the most of any player on the team over that stretch other than Bo Bichette.

Letting Chapman walk and replacing him with Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who has never posted an OPS above .700 in the Majors before, will be a significant loss for the Blue Jays in 2024. Given how things have wound up, it’s reasonable to wonder if general manager Ross Atkins jumped the gun by adding IKF rather than waiting to re-up Chapman at a very reasonable number. Let’s hope that draft pick pans out.