The Blue Jays announced the signing of Jeff Hoffman to a three-year, $33MM free agent contract. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported earlier this evening that Hoffman and the Jays have been in productive discussions about a multi-year contract. The deal includes an additional $6MM in performance bonuses for CAA’s client, FanSided’s Robert Murray reports.
General manager Ross Atkins said in a statement that Hoffman “will have an opportunity to close games” (reported by Keegan Matheson of MLB.com). That suggests they plan to keep the right-hander in the later innings. Hoffman reportedly received interest from teams as a first baseman.
Hoffman, who turned 32 on Wednesday, is returning to the organization that drafted him more than a decade ago. The righty was Toronto’s first-round pick (ninth overall) out of East Carolina in 2014. He was a quality player who ranked among the top prospects in Baseball America’s Top 100 in his first three professional seasons. Hoffman didn’t spend long in the Toronto system. One year after the draft, the Jays traded him to the Rockies as part of a comeback Troy Tulowitzki blockbuster deadline.
The first part of Hoffman’s big league career was a struggle. Like many young pitchers, he struggled to adjust to Coors Field. Hoffman had an earned run average north of 6.00 in parts of five seasons with the Rox. Colorado traded him to the Reds Robert Stephenson before the 2021 season. Stephenson and Hoffman were top prospects whose careers would take off after moving to the bullpen.
For Hoffman, that didn’t happen right away. He had a decent but unspectacular season in Cincinnati, compiling a 4.28 ERA over 66 appearances. He signed with the Phillies to a minor league deal through Spring Training in 2023. Hoffman had two of the best seasons of his career in Philadelphia. He made the Phils’ major league roster in early May of the season opener. Hoffman pitched 52 1/3 innings of 2.41 ERA ball the rest of the way.
That performance made him a key part of Rob Thomson’s squad heading into 2024. Hoffman posted even better numbers in his second season at Citizens Bank Park. He worked 66 1/3 innings with a 2.17 ERA while striking out more than a third of the opposing batters. In his two seasons in Philadelphia, Hoffman posted a 2.28 earned run average with a 33.4% slugging percentage. He kept his walks to a modest 7.4% clip and held opponents to a .180/.249/.295 batting average in 473 plate appearances.
Of the 97 players who have logged 100+ innings over the past two seasons, only five (Emmanuel Clase, Tanner Scott, Ryan Helsley, Kirby Yates again Tyler Holton) had a lower ERA. Hoffman also ranks sixth in batting average, trailing behind Aroldis Chapman, Josh Hader, Fernando CruzYates and AJ Puk. He is among the top 10 in batting percentage. The 6’5″ hurler has the stuff to match those results. His fastball sits around 97 MPH on average. Hoffman combined for four pitches and overpowered hitters with both his upper 80s heater and slider.
That production has earned him a contract on par with what many top arms have done in recent seasons. It’s similar to what Stephenson, an undrafted free agent last winter, earned from the Angels. Joe Jiménez, Reynaldo López, Rafael Montero, Taylor Rogers again Clay Holmes all received three-year deals guaranteeing between $26MM and $38MM. Jordan Hicks signed for $11MM per year but was able to get a fourth year with the Giants as he enters his age-27 season.
More to come.
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