Jays sign FA C Nicolas Deschamps

Former ABC backstop Nicolas Deschamps (Quebec City, Que.) was signed by the Blue Jays off the Stetson campus

August 17, 2021

By Jacques Lanciault

Quebec’s Mr. Baseball

Catcher Nicolas Deschamps (Quebec City, Que.) has been signed by the Toronto Blue Jays as an amateur free agent.

Deschamps didn’t have to wait long to join the Blue Jays’ minor league ranks. His name was added to the club’s Florida Complex League (FCL) roster on Tuesday.

Deschamps joins fellow Quebecer Jean-Christophe Masson (Levis, Que.) on the FCL Jays.

Deschamps becomes the second Quebecer sign as an amateur free agent with a major league club this summer. Fellow catcher Anthony Quirion (Dixville, Que.) signed with the Philadelphia Phillies in June. Both of them received a $20,000 signing bonus.

Deschamps and Quirion are already with their respective minor league teams, while Conor Angel (Pointe-Claire, Que.) and Eric Cerantola (Montreal-born, Oakville raised), who signed pro contracts after being drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays and the Kansas City Royals respectively, are still waiting for their work permits.

Last week, Deschamps, had arrived in Deland, Fla. to settle in at Stetson University to continue his studies and his collegiate baseball career, but after signing with the Blue Jays, he headed across the state to Dunedin.

Over the past year, Deschamps has played for the TNXL Academy in Florida. With TNXL, he batted .307 with three doubles, two triples and five home runs, while stealing 10 bases.