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

Matt Chapman agreed to a two-year, $25 million contract with the Toronto Blue jays that will eliminate his final two years of arbitration before he can become a free agent.

Less than a week after the Oakland A's traded Chapman to the Blue Jay's, Jeff Passan reported the terms of the deal.

Chapman spent his first five MLB seasons with Oakland and emerged as one of the best power-hitting third basemen in baseball. He hit.210/.314/.408 with 27 home runs and 72RBI in a down 2021 campaign.

A change of scenery, along with a better supporting cast, can get Chapman back into form. He played Gold Glove defense at the hot corner while finishing in the top 10 in American League Most Valuable Player voting.

Bo Bichette said on Monday that 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.

Bichette told reporters that he thinks it comes easily. I will work as hard as I can. Both of us have the same goal.

It has been seamless so far. There is some work to be done in the field to get to know each other better and hopefully play together soon.

Chapman won his third Gold Glove Award in 2021. He won the Platinum Glove in both of the last two years.

Bichette is not in Chapman's league as a defender, but he is expected to improve in 2022. If Bichette continues with his inconsistent play at short, he could be put with one of the best defenders in the sport, which could obscure some of his weaknesses.