Daulton Varsho

Daulton John Varsho

Bats Left, Throws Right
Height 5' 10", Weight 190 lb.
School University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee
High School Marshfield (WI) High School
Debut July 30, 2020

Born July 2, 1996 in Chili, WI USA

Biographical Information[edit]

Catcher/Outfielder Daulton Varsho is the son of former major league outfielder Gary Varsho; he is named for his father's former teammate with the Philadelphia Phillies, Darren Daulton, himself a catcher.

After growing up in Wisconsin and playing for the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, Varsho was a 2nd round selection by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2017 amateur draft. While in college, he played summer collegiate ball with the Eau Claire Express of the Northwoods League, managed by his uncle, Dale Varsho. He began his pro career in 2017 with the Hillsboro Hops of the Northwest League, hitting .311/.368/.534 in 50 games. He moved up to the Class A Visalia Rawhide of the California League in 2018, skipping a level in the process, but an injury limited him to 80 games, during which he hit .286 with 11 homers and 44 RBIs. He also played 3 games with the AZL Diamondbacks, on a rehabilitation assignment, and was sent to the Arizona Fall League after the season.

He continued his rapid progression in 2019 as he spent the season in the AA Southern League with the Jackson Generals, where he hit .301/.378/.520 in 108 games, with 25 doubles and 18 homers. Considered one the top catching prospects in the minor leagues, he played for the National League team in the 2019 Futures Game. After the season, he played for Team USA in the 2019 Premier 12. A backup at catcher, right field and DH, he went 1 for 10 with a double, walk and two runs; his lone hit was off Yong-chan Lee.

He made his major league debut at the start of the pandemic-delayed 2020 season and split his time between centerfield and catcher, with some games at DH as well. He hit .188 in 37 games, with 3 homers and 9 RBIs. He was back in the desert in a similar role in 2021, hitting slightly better for a team that had some awful losing streaks. He again played the unusual combination of center field and catcher, with Carson Kelly the primary backstop and Ketel Marte the main man in center. On August 14th, in just his 27th start behind the dish, he caught Tyler Gilbert, who was making his first career start after only three brief relief outings. The two worked beautifully together in spite of their lack of big league experience, with Gilbert pitching the third no-hitter in franchise history in blanking the San Diego Padres, 7-0. He finished the season at .246 in 95 games with 11 homers and 38 RBIs, and an OPS+ of 102. 2022 was another fine season, as he batted .235 in 151 games, with 27 homers, 79 runs and 74 RBIs. His OPS+ was 109, in spite of an OBP of just .302 and he was a finalist for a Gold Glove in the National League at two positions, in right field and as a utility player, although he won neither award.

On December 23, 2022, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in return for OF Lourdes Gurriel and C Gabriel Moreno. the Blue Jays had completely reshaped their outfield over the winter, although it wasn't clear if Varsho was an improvement on either Gurriel or Teoscar Hernandez. Defensively, he was very good, both in left field and in occasionally spelling another defensive stalwart in Kevin Kiermaier in centerfield, but his bat was not all that had been anticipated, something that was made more painful with the realization that the Jays had paid a very steep price for his services, as Gurriel was an All-Star and Moreno one of the top rookies in the majors. In contrast, Varsho hit .220 in 158 games, with 20 homers and 60 RBIs. Not only did his production in all three triple crown categories take a dip in spite of more playing time than the previous year, but his OPS+ fell from 108 to 85, settling in a territory where he was actually hurting the team. He was one of a number of players whose contribution with the bat was well below what had been expected, which meant that the Jays barely sneaked into the postseason, and once there made a quick exit, swept in two games by the Minnesota Twins in the Wild Card Series. Varsho did not contribute much offense in those two games either, going 0 for 5 with 3 strikeouts.

In 2024, Varsho played 67 games in left field and 94 in center field as Kiermaier saw his playing time decrease and was eventually traded. He was excellent defensively at both positions, ending up as the winner of a Gold Glove as the best defensive centerfielder in the American League. That was the good news. With the bat, however, he continued to underperform, hitting just .214 with 18 homers and 58 RBIs, for an OPS+ of 98. That was actually better than his first season with Toronto, but still disappointing for a player with the skills to be an above-average major league hitter. One of the issues was a shoulder injury that required him to go under the knife after the season.

When spring training started in 2025, he had recovered enough to be able to hit, but not yet to throw. He was therefore limited to DH'ing in spring training and hit quite well, slugging .697, but the Jays were not ready to have him open the season unable to play the field. Therefore, he started the year on the injured list while working out at the team's minor league complex to build back his arm strength. He then played a few games with the AAA Buffalo Bisons before playing his first major league game of the season on April 29th at the Rogers Centre. In that game, he made an incredible catch when he tumbled backing up towards the warning track on a fly ball by Jarren Duran; he managed to straighten himself, with his back to the play, and extending his arm still caught the ball backhanded before it landed on the ground. He hit his first homer of the year the next day, and it was an important one as it came with a 6-0 deficit to Boston in the 6th and triggered a comeback that would eventually result in a win in ten innings. He continued to hit for power after that and on May 13th had a two-homer game against the Tampa Bay Rays at the Rogers Centre. He also made a tremendous sliding catch in center field, and the second of his long balls, off Edwin Uceta in the 8th inning, was a three-run shot that put Toronto in the lead, 8-7. Alas, closer Jeff Hoffman then blew that lead by allowing five runs in the 9th, but at the end of the day, Daulton was tied for the team lead with five homers, in just 10 games. He continued to hit well over the next two weeks, but on May 31st, he pulled his left hamstring trying to stretch a double into a triple in a game against The Athletics; he hobbled to third and was tagged out easily, then was immediately placed on the IL. He was hitting .207 but with 8 homers and 20 RBIs in 24 games, and his OPS+ was 112. He was out until August 1st, but was great until the end of the year, appearing in 47 games and batting .256 with 12 homers and 35 RBIs, for final numbers of .238 in 71 games, 20 homers and 55 RBIs and an OPS+ of 122. In the postseason, he went 17 for 72 (.236) with 3 homers and 10 RBIs in 18 games as the Jays made it all the way to Game 7 of the World Series, before losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Big things were expected of Daulton in 2026 after his excellent second half the year before, but like many teammates, he got off to a slow start, hitting .235 with 4 homers and 8 RBIs by the end of April. His first signature moment of the year came on March 13th, when he faced journeyman Aaron Brooks of the Tampa Bay Rays, back in the majors after a two-year absence, with the bases loaded and Tampa having taken a 3-1 lead in the top of the 10th inning. He quickly fell into a 0-2 hole, but battled his way back before eventually driving a pitch to the opposite field into the bullpen area for a walk-off grand slam and a 5-3 Jays win. It was especially sweet as the Rays had proved to be a bugbear for Toronto, winning the first five confrontations between the two teams before that big fly.

Notable Achievements[edit]

AL Gold Glove Winner (2024/CF)
20-Home Run Seasons: 3 (2022, 2023 & 2025)

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Daulton Varsho

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