Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will become a free agent in less than a year. Along with Guerrero, Bo Bichette will also become a free agent. The Blue Jays wanted to extend Guerrero before they lost him on the free-agent market. At the same time, they are not ready to match his requirements.
The Blue Jays offered Guerrero $340 million, but he declined without hesitation. Experts believe they need to bump their offer to at least $450 million or more to retain the All-Star slugger. Guerrero would remain in Toronto if he got the right kind of money.
The Blue Jays’ issue is that they have focused on other stars rather than retaining their top players. Toronto pursued Juan Soto, Max Fried, and Cobrin Burnes and is still pursuing a couple of free agents. Yet, they have not considered fixing their issues within the team.
The fans love Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and this is the perfect opportunity for Ross Atkins to please his fan base. Extending Guerrero’s contract to $450 million or matching his terms will make sense. The Blue Jays must act fast before they miss out on Guerrero and the other players.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. To Enter His Final Year Of Arbitration Eligibility
To make things worse, Guerrero will enter his final year of arbitration eligibility. The slugger could go all out to get a huge sum, irrespective of an extension with the team. According to MLB insider Bob Nightengale, Guerrero can become the third member of the $30 million arbitration club along with Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto.
There will be more than 100 arbitration cases settled by 1 ET Thursday with Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero threatening to become the third member of the $30 million arbitration club, joining Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) January 9, 2025
Toronto will need to spend before they lose Guerrero. Instead of pursuing other free agents, they could extend one of their best players to get things started. Despite their disappointing performance, Guerrero was a bright spot for the team in 2024.
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Blue Jays fans are unhappy with the team’s progress this offseason. Losing Vladimir Guerrero will make things worse for Atkins. On the other hand, teams like the San Francisco Giants continue their hot pursuit of free agents after signing veteran pitcher Justin Verlander.
