Brandon Valenzuela of the Toronto Blue Jays is soaked after defeating the Los Angeles Angels at Rogers Centre on May 9.Kevin Sousa/Getty Images
On Brandon Valenzuela’s left forearm is a medium-sized tattoo of a cartoon bear, leaping with its paws in the air, named Koda. The ink captures a scene from the 2003 Disney movie Brother Bear.
Not seen on Toronto’s rookie catcher’s forearm is the character Koda’s embracing – a bear named Kenai. Valenzuela’s older brother, Edgar, has a tattoo of Kenai.
Kenai is Koda’s older brother in the film.
“The relationship between Koda and Kenai, that’s what I feel with Edgar,” Valenzuela, 25, said. “He got experience quicker than me and he was teaching me about life.
“Besides my parents, he’s taken care of me a lot.”
Over the last two years, Valenzuela said their brotherly bond grew stronger. One day, while sifting through his Instagram feed, Valenzuela saw a “cute” brothers’ tattoo, which inspired him to search for something to symbolize his relationship with Edgar.
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The pair inked their matching Koda-Kenai marks in January.
When Valenzuela made his MLB debut on April 5 in Chicago, his parents, two brothers – Jaime, who played baseball in Mexico, and Edgar – and Edgar’s wife were all in attendance.
“It was an amazing moment,” Valenzuela said. “I ain’t gonna lie, it was really emotional.”
After Wednesday’s outing against the Tampa Bay Rays, the rookie has 25 major-league games under his belt. His elevated role in the five weeks since his debut come due to an injury to catcher Alejandro Kirk.
A left thumb fracture has sidelined Kirk since April 4. In his place, Valenzuela and fellow catcher Tyler Heineman, 34, have tried offsetting the two-time American League all-star’s absence.
“I think he’s done a really good job of blending in from a catching standpoint,” Blue Jays general manager John Schneider said.
Valenzuela is congratulated as he crosses home plate by Daulton Varsho after hitting a three-run home run. Valenzuela noted support from veterans like Varsho, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and George Springer has helped to keep his anxiety low.Chris Young/The Canadian Press
Valenzuela’s batted .222 with four home runs through 63 at-bats. The rookie ranks second in home runs per game (0.16) among Blue Jays with a minimum of six contests played. First-year Kazuma Okamoto leads Toronto in home runs (10) and home runs per game (0.24).
“He’s obviously got power, he’s obviously got a lot of strength, so that’s a plus,” Schneider said. “It’s not easy to do, coming into the big leagues for the first time, and he’s been a pleasant surprise.”
Though Valenzuela’s debut came on April 5 against the White Sox, he pinpointed his ‘welcome to the show’ moment to two days later when Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto – who won the 2025 World Series MVP against the Blue Jays – opposed him in Toronto. The batter-pitcher duel came after he watched Shohei Ohtani lead off for Los Angeles to start the game.
“I was like ‘Okay, this is the league, I’m here,’” Valenzuela recalled.
“I never felt overpowered by them,” he added. “But at the same time, I knew it wasn’t going to be a nice, easy game. So, the preparation mentally was more focused.”
Blue Jays pitcher Tommy Nance hugs teammate Valenzuela after defeating the Angels on May 9. Valenzuela has a tattoo on his left forearm of a cartoon bear, Koda, from the 2003 Disney movie Brother Bear.Kevin Sousa/Getty Images
Valenzuela implied he could wax poetically about the Blue Jays veterans who have offered him advice over the last five-plus weeks. Advice, which Valenzuela, wearing a commemorative T-shirt given away to fans on Monday to celebrate “legendary” home runs throughout the franchise’s 50-year history, admitted has helped to keep the anxiety low.
Specifically, he noted support from veterans like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 27, Daulton Varsho, 29, and George Springer, 36, among others.
“The guys are amazing here,” Valenzuela said. “I never felt they were thinking less of me because I was a rookie, which I heard stories about that, so I was kind of mentally preparing for that, but I’m happy.”
“He’s been everything that we need him to be,” Springer said. “He’s still learning and still understanding the game, but he’s been great.”
Springer was one of five iconic Blue Jays on Valenzuela’s shirt. This season, the Blue Jays – Valenzuela included – hope to make the organization update the T-shirt with a sixth iconic homer in the fall.
“That’s what we’re [expletive] here for,” Valenzuela said. “We’re here for the playoffs, we’re here to win it all. We’re trying to get a ring, so if I can contribute to the team in any way, it’s gonna be good for me.”