MLB Rumors: Matt Chapman, Blue Jays Agree to New 2-Year, $25M Contract After Trade

The Toronto Blue Jays and third baseman Matt Chapman agreed to a two-year, $25 million contract that will eliminate his final two years of arbitration before he can become a free agent.

Jeff Passan of ESPN reported the terms of the deal Tuesday, less than a week after the Oakland Athletics traded Chapman to the Jays.

Chapman, 28, spent his first five MLB seasons with Oakland, emerging as one of the best power-hitting third basemen in baseball. He's coming off a down 2021 campaign in which he hit .210/.314/.403 with 27 home runs and 72 RBI.

The Jays are hoping a change of scenery, along with a better supporting cast, can get Chapman back into form. He finished in the top 10 in American League MVP voting in 2018 and 2019 while also playing Gold Glove defense at the hot corner.

On Monday, Toronto shortstop Bo Bichette said Chapman's transition to the team has been "seamless" as the duo tries to get into a rhythm before the start of the regular season.

"I think it comes easily," Bichette told reporters. "He's ready to work as hard as he can. I'm ready to work as hard as I can. We both have the same goal in mind.

"It's been pretty seamless so far. Obviously there's some work to do in the field and get to know each other better and hopefully play together soon and everything's going well that way."

Chapman topped the AL in defensive WAR in 2018 and 2019 and won his third Gold Glove Award in 2021. He won the Platinum Glove in 2018 and 2019 as the AL's best defender overall.

Bichette is not in Chapman's league as a defender, but FanGraphs' projections are bullish on his improvement in 2022. Even if Bichette continues with his inconsistent play at short, pairing him with one of the best defenders in the sport could obscure some of those shortcomings.