It’s been a busy start to 2012 in the Toronto Blue Jays front office. The Blue Jays announced Tuesday that the team has resigned three players.
The Blue Jays inked one-year contracts with second baseman Kelly Johnson, right-hander Carlos Villanueva and outfielder Ben Francisco, avoiding salary arbitration.
Johnson gets $6,375,000, a raise from $5.85 million. Villanueva receives $2,277,500, up from $1,415,000. Francisco’s salary is $1,537,500, a raise from $1,175,000.
Johnson was acquired on August 23 of last season from Arizona and posted a .270 average with three home runs and nine RBI in a Blue Jays uniform. In 791 career games, the Austin, Texas native has recorded a .260 average with a .343 on-base percentage and a .441 slugging percentage with Atlanta, Arizona and Toronto.
Villanueva appeared in 33 games (13 starts) for the Blue Jays last season, posting a 6-4 record with a 4.04 ERA. The Dominican Republic native is a career 26-28 with a 4.28 ERA in 263 games (40 starts) with Milwaukee and Toronto.
Francisco was acquired by the Blue Jays from Philadelphia on December 12, 2011 and will make his Blue Jays debut in 2012. The Santa Ana, California native batted .240 with six home runs and 34 RBI in 2011 for the Phillies and owns a .260 lifetime average with 45 home runs and 174 RBI over five seasons.
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