Photo: Larry Placido/Icon Sportswire

Kevin Kiermaier didn’t make MLB Trade Rumors’ list of its Top 50 Trade Candidates. When the Blue Jays put him on waivers, no one claimed him, likely because that would mean paying what’s left on his $10.5 million contract for this season.

But we have to think there’s some contending team out there for whom Kiermaier could play a prominent role.

We say this even though Kiermaier is hitting .189 with a .540 OPS in just under 200 plate appearances for the disappointing Blue Jays this season. That OPS is a 201-point dip from last season, a good year that earned Kiermaier his latest one-year deal.

Kiermaier has value on a good team, which the Blue Jays are not, because he is still a very good defensive center fielder who can impact a game in any inning. Kiermaier won a Fielding Bible Award at that position last year. He’s been very good this year too.

Kiermaier’s 7 Runs Saved rank tied for 5th among center fielders in 2024. His three-year total of 27 there is topped only by Daulton Varsho (31) and Michael A. Taylor (31). 

In terms of MLB-tracked stats, Kiermaier’s 90-foot split time, his sprint speed, and his jumps are near matches for what they were last season. He ranks in the 97th percentile for arm strength (averaging 93.7 MPH). The skills are still there.

Admittedly, if you look at most of the contending teams, they’re pretty well set in center field for all 9 innings (for example, the Mariners and Padres aren’t likely to displace Julio Rodriguez or Jackson Merrill at the end of a game for a defensive replacement).

But there are a couple of spots where Kiermaier could fit. One example would be with the Dodgers where James Outman just came back to try to stabilize the position, though Kiermaier’s a better defender than he is. The Orioles (Cedric Mullins), Guardians (Tyler Freeman), Giants (Heliot Ramos), and Rangers (Leody Taveras) are others that have center fielders that aren’t as good defensively as Kiermaier is.

These teams could install Kiermaier as their ‘defensive closer,’ bringing him into the game in the 8th or 9th inning to save the game with his glove. As an added wrinkle, they could even give Kiermaier a light-show entrance a la Edwin Díaz, with John Fogerty’s “Center Field” as his entrance music (alright, maybe that’s a little much).

You might laugh, but remember Michael Harris’ catch and double play in last year’s playoffs or Chas McCormick’s in the 2022 World Series? Kiermaier has made plays that looked like those plenty of times. He had one reasonably similar to that last month. There’s also the catch from the photo atop this article which just happened last week.

There are other players who will be switching teams in the next couple of weeks who are good defensively. But none have Kiermaier’s reputation for defensive excellence. His value has the potential to be priceless.

Most Defensive Runs Saved – Center Fielders

Since Stat First Calculated in 2003