The Toronto Blue Jays finally landed a high-profile free agent on Monday, agreeing to a $92.5 million, five-year contract with Anthony Santander.

The agreement includes an opt out and a 2030 team option with escalators that could increase the value to $110 million over six seasons, according to his agency, the Beverly Hills Sports Council.

Toronto made a play for Shohei Ohtani last year and was in the mix for Juan Soto before he joined the New York Mets in December. The Blue Jays also were reportedly one of the finalists for Roki Sasaki before the Japanese pitcher said he intends to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But Toronto managed to put Santander in its lineup alongside Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and George Springer. The Blue Jays are looking to rebound after finishing last in the AL East with a 74-88 record in 2024.

Santander set career highs with 44 homers, 102 RBIs and 91 runs scored in 155 games for Baltimore last year.

The outfielder batted .235 with a .506 slugging percentage while making the AL All-Star team for the first time.

Santander, who turned 30 in October, was the majors’ first switch hitter to reach 40 homers since 2006. He became the fourth switch hitter to hit at least 44 homers in a season, joining Mickey Mantle (twice), Lance Berkman and Chipper Jones.

The Venezuelan slugger helped Baltimore get into the playoffs for the second straight year, but it was swept by Kansas City in the opening round.

Santander received a qualifying offer after the season, so the Orioles will receive a compensatory pick after the first round of this year’s amateur draft. The Blue Jays lose their second draft pick and $500,000 in 2026 international signing bonus allocation.

Left-hander Brandon Eisert was designated for assignment to make room for Santander on Toronto’s 40-man roster.

Santander signed with Cleveland as an international free agent in July 2011. He was selected by Baltimore in the Rule 5 draft in December 2016.

After being sidelined by right elbow inflammation, he made his major league debut with the Orioles on Aug 18, 2017, but he appeared in only 13 games that first year.

Santander had a breakout performance in 2022, batting .240 with 33 homers and 89 RBIs in 152 games. He stamped himself as part of an emerging group of young players as the Orioles went 83-79 after losing 110 games in the previous season.

Santander hit .257 with 28 homers, 95 RBIs and a career-high 41 doubles as Baltimore won the 2023 AL East title with a 101-61 record. The Orioles then were swept by the Rangers in their AL Division Series.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

A wild week of upsets and led to a significant shakeup in the AP Top 25.

One constant: Auburn.

The Tigers were the unanimous pick at No. 1 in The AP men’s poll, holding on to the top spot following a week in which 19 ranked teams lost at least once — including seven teams in the top 10.

Auburn claimed the program’s second No. 1 ranking last week and won both its games despite playing without injured big man Johni Broome. The Tigers rolled over No. 14 Mississippi State 88-66 and survived a late comeback to beat then-No. 19 Georgia 70-68.

No. 2 Duke moved up a spot after winning both of its games last week and swapped places with No. 3 Iowa State, which blew out No. 12 Kansas but lost to No. 23 West Virginia. Alabama and Florida rounded out the top five despite each losing a game last week.

Only three teams — Alabama, Florida and No. 6 Tennessee — held the same spot from a week ago. The chaotic week allowed No. 8 Michigan State to move into the top 10 for the first time this season and No. 22 Missouri into the poll for the first time since 2022-23.

South Carolina has cruised through the difficult part of its conference schedule and remained No. 2 in The AP women’s Top 25, picking up a first-place vote to gain a bit of ground on top-ranked UCLA.

The Gamecocks are in the midst of a five-game stretch against ranked opponents. They’ve beaten Texas by 17, Alabama by 18 and Oklahoma by 41 on Sunday. They face No. 5 LSU on Thursday and No. 17 Tennessee on Jan. 7.

UCLA received 27 first-place ballots this week while No. 3 Notre Dame got the other two. USC remained No. 4.

Kansas State forward Ayoka Lee will be sidelined indefinitely after an X-ray and MRI exam revealed the All-American fractured a bone in her foot in the second quarter of the No. 10 Wildcats’ win over Arizona State.

The school called it “probable” that Lee will return before the end of the season, but more will be known in the coming weeks.

Maryland lost reserve guard Bri McDaniel for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL in her right knee, the team announced.

The junior suffered the injury last Tuesday against Minnesota at the end of the first quarter when she went for a layup but fell awkwardly and had to be carried off the court.

McDaniel had been averaging 10.6 points, 2.4 assists and 2.1 rebounds off the bench.

NO. 7 TEXAS 89, NO. 8 MARYLAND 51: Madison Booker scored 28 points and the Longhorns (18-2) routed the Terrapins (16-2) in the inaugural Coretta Scott King Classic in Newark, N.J.

The doubleheader that also featured No. 1 UCLA and 25th-ranked Baylor was created to honor King’s legacy and celebrate female empowerment in sports. It’s the first time the names of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King have been licensed for a sporting event. The Bruins won 72-57.

Texas jumped all over Maryland thanks to Booker. The preseason All-American had 13 points in the opening quarter as the Longhorns went up 28-12 after one quarter. It was 48-18 at the half.

Maryland never threatened in the second half.

SKIING

Olympic slalom champion Petra Vlhova will miss the Alpine skiing world championships next month after a setback in her recovery from a knee injury and is already focusing on the 2026 Winter Games, her team said.

Vlhova has been Mikaela Shiffrin’s main rival in slalom for the past decade. However, Shiffrin’s participation at the worlds in Saalbach, Austria, is also in doubt as the American has yet to make her return from abdominal surgery following a crash in November.

Vlhova has not raced since tearing the ACL in her right knee one year ago after crashing in a World Cup giant slalom in her native Slovakia.