Michael Brantley is not leaving the Houston Astros for the Toronto Blue Jays, after all.
Multiple reports on Tuesday morning claimed the Blue Jays and Brantley were in agreement on a three-year deal. It was then reported that the deal was not finalized but the two sides were talking. A few hours later, Brantley agreed to a two-year, $32 million deal to remain with the Astros.
MLB source: #Astros reach an agreement with Michael Brantley on a two-year deal worth $32 million.
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) January 20, 2021
There are a couple of different things that could have happened. As ESPN’s Buster Olney notes, Brantley has dealt with injuries in the past. If he had a deal in place with the Blue Jays pending a physical, it’s possible Toronto received medical information they were uneasy about.
Or, there also could have been a scenario where Brantley got near the finish line in talks with the Blue Jays and Houston swooped in and upped their offer. The Astros already failed to re-sign George Springer (who is headed to Toronto), so perhaps they decided they did not want to lose Brantley, too.
In any event, Brantley will be back with the Astros next season. The 33-year-old hit .300 with five home runs, 22 RBI and an OPS of .840 in 46 games last year.
