Asked about a possible extension for Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins declined to get into specifics but said: "Love the player. I'm really excited about the year he had, especially the finish to it, and the leader that he is."
Blue Jays – Signing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to a contract extension is the needed move to build a postseason contending roster this offseason
Photo credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
Nov 28, 2024, 08:00 ESTUpdated: Nov 28, 2024, 08:24 EST
The wait was finally over. On April 26, 2019, prized top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. made his debut with the Toronto Blue Jays in the middle of a rather hopeless season. It was an ordinary debut, as Guerrero Jr. went for 1-for-4 to get his first hit out the way but there was a sense of hope with the youngster living out his dream. His debut was the beginning of something meaningful.
For once, Toronto had hope and better yet, a chance to become more than a bottom-rung team in a tough American League division. The rebuild that Shapiro and Atkins had been promising to execute following the 2016 season was now on the downward trend of the rough years and the prospects that were going to lead the organization as the core were getting their feet wet in the big leagues.
That much became clear when the star first baseman slashed .311/.401/.601 and clobbered 48 home runs in 2021 – posting a 1.002 OPS and a 167 OPS+. The Blue Jays may have fallen short in the playoff chase that year after returning to October baseball the year before but incredible an MVP-worthy campaign from Guerrero Jr. inspired optimism among fans who reminisced on the 2015 and 2016 iterations of the team.
Guerrero Jr. and his current contract status with the Blue Jays
Having younger core players seemed like a promise of eternity. However, the cold, hard truth was that their stay wasn’t necessarily guaranteed. Guerrero Jr.’s contract was set to expire by the end of the 2025 season after achieving Super Two status and barring a long-term extension, he will be hitting the open market.
Other teams in similar situations as the Blue Jays didn’t hesitate to extend their up-and-coming talents. The Seattle Mariners signed centre fielder Julio Rodríguez to a 12-year, $209.3 million deal; the Atlanta Braves signed team-friendly contract extensions with Ronald Acuña Jr., Sean Murphy, Matt Olson and Austin Riley; the Kansas City Royals extended superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. to an 11-year, $288.7 million contract. Even the Boston Red Sox extended third baseman Rafael Devers for a 10-year, 313.5 million deal.
The series of contract extensions provided more confidence for younger players who bet on themselves. There was also a sense of security and stability that they would play for one city and team for a long time. Despite all the benefits contract extensions could potentially bring, Canada’s only Major League team remained silent on any contract extensions with their younger talents besides buying out the arbitration years of Bo Bichette, which did not provide any stability past the 2025 season as well. The only extension the front office has completed over the past few years was the seven-year pact with José Berríos, who has a player option in his contract following the 2026 season should the trajectory of the Blue Jays change and he wants to test free agency.
The Blue Jays have been extremely quiet about extending superstar Guerrero this offseason but it is a question that has been raised at year-end press conferences for years. If the Blue Jays were to sign an extension with a homegrown star like Guerrero, there would certainly be a positive ripple effect felt throughout the fanbase, who is not too keen on Ross Atkins at this very moment. Signing superstars like Guerrero signifies a team’s interest in building a consistently competitive team and their willingness to grow and develop players. That’s what flurries of other major league teams understood and saw the value in investing long-term. While some struggled to keep up with their contender status, the fact was that teams who extended younger players like the Braves and the Royals have become more competitive.
Extensions build trust. And trust is crucial in building a team that will fight against all odds throughout the 162-game season. That’s why teams like Kansas City could lure more free agents last offseason. Baseball is a business at the end of the day and it can focus heavily on money and transactions. Nevertheless, people are at the heart of this business and it’d be foolish to ignore how much the human factor plays into the win-loss record and nitty gritty statistics.
Vlad Guerrero shushes the Blue Jays crowd after a home run. Blue Jays are up 9-2
There will always be an inherent risk when it comes to investing in players. The fact of the matter is that no one can foresee the exact future nor will they fully understand what they are getting into. But it takes risks to try and reap the rewards and while long-term deals can falter as time goes on, extending and keeping a player like Guerrero in Toronto speaks volumes about the direction the team will be moving towards over the next few years.
The positive outcomes of a Guerrero Jr. extension
If the Blue Jays are looking to reignite excitement and rehabilitate their status for the 2025 season, signing an extension with Guerrero isn’t just an option, it’s a prerequisite before signing any other free agents or trading for players. An extension of this magnitude determines the Blue Jays’ trajectory and how they view their future. Given their lacklustre record in the past season, Toronto needs to keep the core together more than ever – that starts with trusting the 25-year-old first baseman. Superstar free agents will look at this team and want to know what the future holds and having a stalwart on the roster like Guerrero is a huge selling point about the winning direction.
Look at how starting pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu’s signing with the Blue Jays during the 2019 offseason ushered the team into a new era. A year after Ryu signed a four-year, $80 million contract with the Blue Jays, the team went out and signed centre fielder George Springer to a six-year, $150 million deal and infielder Marcus Semien to a one-year, $18 million contract the following offseason. Ryu, a Scott Boras client, signed with the Jays and kicked off the mentality of Toronto not only being a team to commit but the organization’s commitment to acquiring bigger-name stars to supplement the roster.
If Ryu could spark positive momentum in the Blue Jays’ recent history, imagine how much impact Guerrero Jr.’s extension would have. If Vladdy manages to sign a massive extension, how can heavy-hitting free agents like Corbin Burnes, Max Fried and Juan Soto just brush off the Blue Jays? Free agents look for security and loyalty more than anything. Even a tinge of trust would make a world of difference in this free-agent class as they seek their new teams and reasons to compete and also bring some fanfare back to a fanbase that has had little to cheer for in recent years.
Buck Martinez believes signing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will be the key to getting the Blue Jays back on track. 🔑
Believing in What Vladdy can offer has always been the solution to the Blue Jays’ never-ending conundrum. There will be peaks and valleys in the Dominican player’s journey but extending him is worthwhile because he is ridiculously talented in the end. So take out your post-it note and write this now: In Vladdy we trust.