J.T. Realmuto, Phillies agree on five-year deal, AP sources say

PHILADELPHIA — The "Sign J.T." chants from fans gathered outside the ballpark during the pandemic-altered season and echoed by Bryce Harper and many players on the Philadelphia Phillies were loud and clear. It’s happening. The Philadelphia Phillies and two-time All-Star catcher J.T.

Realmuto agreed Tuesday on a five-year, $115.5 million contract, two people familiar with the deal told The Associated Press. Both people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because Realmuto’s deal was pending a successful physical.

Realmuto gets $20 million next season, of which $10 million is deferred, with $5 million each payable in 2026 and 2027. He gets $23,875,000 in each of the final four years. He does not have a no-trade provision.

The deal includes a $1 million assignment bonus if traded.

Realmuto’s average annual salary of $23.1 million will become the highest for a catcher, topping the $23 million Joe Mauer averaged in an eight-year, $184 million deal with the Minnesota Twins that covered 2011-18.

Harper posted a photo of him and Realmuto celebrating a run on Instagram soon after the news broke. Reliever Archie Bradley wrote "SignJT" on Twitter after he signed a one-year deal last week.

Realmuto was acquired from the Marlins in February 2019 in a trade that sent righthander Sixto Sanchez and catcher Jorge Alfaro to Miami along with pitching prospect Will Stewart and $250,000 in international signing bonus pool allocation. He made his second NL All-Star team with the Phillies in 2019 and earned a Gold Glove. He had career-highs in homers (25), RBIs (83) and slugging percentage (.493) that season.

Realmuto, who turns 30 in March, hit .266 with 11 homers, 32 RBIs and a career-best OPS of .840 last season. He earned $3,703,704 prorated for the pandemic-shortened season from a $10 million salary. His deal is the second-largest of the offseason behind outfielder George Springer’s six-year, $150 million contract with Toronto.

The catcher's market narrowed last month when the Mets went for a less expensive option and signed James McCann to a four-year, $40.6 million deal. The Phillies haven’t had a winning season nor reached the postseason since 2011. They finished 28-32 under first-year manager Joe Girardi in 2020, missing a wild-card berth by one game.

Retaining Realmuto, a fan-favorite, was a priority for new President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski. Giving Bradley a one-year, $6 million deal had been Philadelphia’s most significant offseason move to this point.