Blue Jays reach deals with 11 of 12 players ahead of arbitration

The Toronto Blue Jays agreed to one-year contracts Thursday with 11 of their 12 players who were eligible for salary arbitration, with the lone exception being three-time All-Star slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The Blue Jays agreed to deals with catchers Danny Jansen ($5.2 million) and Alejandro Kirk ($2.8 million), infielders Cavan Biggio ($4.2 million) and Santiago Espinal ($2,725,000), outfielder Daulton Varsho ($5.65 million), left-handed pitchers Génesis Cabrera ($1,512,000) and Tim Mayza ($3.59 million), and right-handed pitchers Jordan Romano ($7.75 million), Erik Swanson ($2.75 million), Trevor Richards ($2.15 million) and Nate Pearson ($800,000).

The Blue Jays still haven’t reached a deal with Guerrero, who made $14.5 million last season and hit .264 with 26 homers and 94 RBIs. He led the American League with 48 homers in 2021.

Guerrero can still negotiate a deal with the team before a hearing. Eligible players without agreements will be scheduled for hearings before three-person panels from Jan. 29 through Feb. 16 in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Of the 11 players who agreed to deals, Romano’s was the biggest. The two-time All-Star has been the Blue Jays’ closer the past three seasons and had a 2.90 ERA with 36 saves last year.

Kirk, a 2022 All-Star, also got a big bump in pay, more than tripling his salary of $767,300 from last season.