Alejandro Kirk And Blue Jays Agree To Five-Year Extension
The Toronto Blue Jays and catcher Alejandro Kirk agreed to a five-year, $58 million contract extension on Saturday. The 5-foot-8 backstop has been with the Jays' organization ever since he broke at 18 years old back in 2017 and will now be with Toronto through his age-30 season. The 2022 All-Star and Silver Slugger Award winner puts the bat on the ball well, recording an 86.1 percent career contact rate and a low 11.5 percent strikeout rate, but it doesn't translate to much else, especially for fantasy. The 26-year-old has seen the counting stats dwindle since his All-Star season, finishing with five home runs, 54 RBI, and only 23 runs scored in 103 games last season. He's having a nice spring, though, slashing .302/.354/.465 with a pair of home runs and eight RBI, so perhaps he can carry that momentum into the regular season. Still, he's the 21st catcher coming off the board in drafts and has little upside, so he's really only viable in deeper and two-catcher leagues.
According to Keegan Matheson of MLB.com, Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk is set to see an increased workload behind the dish during the 2025 campaign. With the team parting ways with Danny Jansen, who is now in Tampa Bay, Kirk stands alone at the top of the depth chart. Toronto manager John Schneider noted that this is the "best" version of Kirk the team has seen. Last season, Kirk logged 103 starts. Across this stint, the 26-year-old held a .253/.319/.359 line with five home runs. He showed a strong eye at the plate with a 13.2 percent strikeout rate, placing him in the 95th percentile. In addition, Kirk is an excellent defender behind the dish as he placed in the 97th percentile in caught stealing above average and the 93rd percentile in framing. Fantasy managers in two-catcher formats should consider taking a flier on Kirk late in drafts as he should see the vast majority of starts in 2025.
Toronto Blue Jays second baseman/outfielder Davis Schneider and catcher Alejandro Kirk are out of the starting lineup on Saturday against the visiting Oakland Athletics. Rookie Spencer Horwitz is starting at second base and batting cleanup, and rookie Addison Barger is in left field and in the eight-hole against A's right-hander Osvaldo Bido. Brian Serven is doing the catching and is batting ninth. Horwitz, who has handled himself nicely in 52 games in his second major-league season, is obviously the most attractive DFS option on Saturday over Barger and Serven. He hit his fifth home run of the year on Friday night and has hit a strong .282 (50-for-177) with a .793 OPS, 20 RBI and 24 runs scored in 2024. Barger, meanwhile, has struggled to the tune of a .189/.223/.322 slash line in the first 90 at-bats of his big-league career.
Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk (elbow) is back in the starting nine on Saturday afternoon as the Blue Jays continue a series against their division rival New York Yankees. The backstop was kept out of the lineup over the past few days due to a minor elbow injury. This is a great sign as the 25-year-old began to heat up at the plate, carrying an excellent .321/.344/.377 line since July 1. Overall, through 59 games this season, Kirk has had a down season with a modest .239/.305/.321 line, but he might have begun to turn the corner. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor Kirk's progress, as he should be in line to see the majority of starts behind the dish in Toronto since the Blue Jays shipped Danny Jansen to the Red Sox. DFS players should take a look at Kirk this afternoon as he will bat in the cleanup spot and will face Yankee southpaw Carlos Rodon, who has carried a 4.05 ERA in July.
Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk (elbow) was removed from Tuesday's game against the division-rival Baltimore Orioles due to a left elbow contusion. Kirk left Tuesday's game against Baltimore after being hit by a pitch in the sixth inning, and it's encouraging to hear that he's only dealing with a bruise. Fantasy managers should consider the 25-year-old backstop day-to-day ahead of Wednesday's contest against the O's. After hitting a sacrifice fly to center field in the fourth inning to score first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and make it a 4-1 ballgame on Tuesday, Kirk is slashing a weak .239/.305/.321 with two home runs, nine doubles, and 26 RBI in 59 games for the Blue Jays this season but is set to get all the action he can handle the rest of the way. In the aftermath of Danny Jansen being sent to the Boston Red Sox, Brian Serven is the only other traditional option behind the dish on Toronto's active roster.
Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk is getting the day off Saturday when the club takes on the Tampa Bay Rays and right-hander Zack Littell. The 25-year-old is going to receive significant playing time with fellow backstop Danny Jansen out with a wrist injury but he will give way to Brian Serven on Saturday after starting the first two games of the season. After putting up quality production in parts of his first three seasons, Kirk slipped at the plate in 2023, hitting .250 with just eight homers across 422 trips to the plate. While he boasts excellent bat-handling skills and a keen eye at the plate, Kirk's lack of power caps his fantasy value, especially when he likely falls back into a timeshare with Jansen upon his return.
Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk is not in the starting lineup on Saturday against the visiting Cleveland Guardians. Danny Jansen will do the catching and bat sixth against Guardians left-hander Logan Allen. Kirk continues to share playing time behind the dish with Jansen, limiting his overall fantasy appeal to two-catcher leagues. The 24-year-old Mexican backstop is slashing a mediocre .247/.328/.338 with only six home runs, 30 RBI and 23 runs scored in 323 plate appearances and 94 games after making his first All-Star team in 2021. The good news is that Kirk has been better in the second half, going 24-for-86 (.279) with three home runs, three doubles, eight RBI and nine runs scored in 27 games (22 starts) since the All-Star break.
On Saturday, Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk went 3-for-4 at the plate, hitting two home runs while collecting three RBI. The Blue Jays knocked off the Los Angeles Angels 6-1. In the seventh inning, Kirk launched a solo home run against the left-handed reliever Aaron Loup, and in the following frame, he smashed a two-run homer off right-hander Jaime Barria. The 24-year-old now has four multi-homer games in his career. Recently, Kirk has been hot, with 12 hits in his last 22 trips to the plate.
Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk went 3-for-3 with a home run, two RBI, a run scored and a walk in Thursday's 4-0 shutout win over the visiting San Diego Padres to help the team avoid a three-game sweep. The long ball was Kirk's first since June 5, so hopefully it will get him going in terms of power. The three-hit performance was also his first multi-hit game since he had three hits on June 13. He's been very quiet offensively so far in July, going 5-for-29 (.172) with the one home run, three RBI and two runs scored in 31 trips to the plate over 10 games. We'll see if the 24-year-old backstop's three hit game on Thursday can get him jump-started at the plate with the end of July quickly approaching.
Alejandro Kirk Activated From Injured List Thursday
Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk has been activated from the 10-day injured list Thursday after dealing with a hand injury. It's been a tough season for the 24-year-old at the plate as Kirk has hit just .253 with three homers and a .668 OPS across 202 trips to the plate. The youngster continues to grade out well defensively but will share reps behind the plate with fellow backstop Danny Jansen moving forward. Catcher Tyler Heineman has been optioned to Triple-A Buffalo in a corresponding move but it's unclear if Kirk will be in the starting lineup Thursday when the club takes on Giants right-hander Keaton Winn.
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