Blue Jay for life! Toronto finally signs Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to record-breaking contract.
Photo credit: https://x.com/theScore
April 7th might just go down as the greatest day in Toronto Blue JaysToronto Blue Jays history. After months of seemingly endless negotiations, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Is a Blue Jay for life. The 4X All-star and face of the franchise has agreed to a 14 year, $500MM contract extension.
Multiple reports, including those from The Athletic and MLB.com and Blue Jays insider Keegan Matheson, starting coming in just after midnight on Monday.
The deal, which is still pending a physical, has not been confirmed by the club or Guerrero. But at this point, it's just a formality.
This is a monumental, seismic, franchise-altering event.
Guerrero had initially set a Spring Training deadline of February 18th, but the two sides kept on talking after that day came and went.
And now, he holds the record for the largest contract in Blue Jays history, blowing past the six year, $150MM deal currently held by George Springer.
The contract is either the second or third richest of all-time, depending on how deferrals are taken into account. It trails only the 15 year, $760MM deal signed by Juan Soto.Shohei Ohtanis $700MM deal, nets out to about $460MM when deferrals are taken into account.
Guerrero is off to a bit of a slow start this season. Although he has four RBIs, he has yet to homer and is hitting only .256. No doubt the contract talks provided a distraction.
With talks finally over, Vladdy will now be able to turn his full attention back to baseball. Hopefully, the signing will spur him into action.
The Blue Jays have long struggled to retain home-grown stars. Before Vladdy, the last superstar who came through the Blue Jays system was arguably Roy Halladay.
The signing of Guerrero significantly changes the narrative around the Blue Jays. That can only be a good thing.
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AVRIL 7 | 122 ANSWERS Blue Jay for life! Toronto finally signs Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to record-breaking contract. Are you happy that the Blue Jays finally signed Vladimir Guerrero Jr.? | ||
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