The Philadelphia Phillies have made a splash in the free-agent market. They were able to re-sign their all-star backstop. The Phillies have reportedly agreed to a 5-year, $115 million contract with stud catcher J.T. Realmuto, who was arguably one of the top names to target this offseason.
Multiple insiders reported the news on Twitter after it broke.
Catcher J.T. Realmuto and the Philadelphia Phillies are in agreement on a five-year, $115.5 million contract, sources confirm to ESPN.
It always felt inevitable that Realmuto was coming back to Philly. Now it’s official. @CraigMish was first with the agreement.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 26, 2021
In 2020, Realmuto played in 47 games for the Phillies, where he hit .266/.349/.491 with 11 home runs and 32 RBI on the year. He has been with the Phillies for two years now after being traded there from the Miami Marlins before the 2019 season began. Realmuto was one of the last remaining “good” pieces the Marlins had from the Jose Fernandez era.
But, this offseason, rumors had been circling that Realmuto was on the move, reportedly being targeted by the New York Mets early who would settle for James McCann instead. Realmuto was then rumored to be a target of the Toronto Blue Jays, who ultimately settled on their big signing of George Springer.
The Phillies got their guy though, he has been a rock-solid backstop and is an exceptional complement to what they will be trying to build over there. Not to mention they still have plenty of years left on their monster contract that was given to Bryce Harper on his 13-year megadeal. The Phillies will look to make a run in the National League East Division in 2021, which only helps that cause.
