After striking out again in their seemingly never-ending quest to land a big-time free agent, the Toronto Blue Jays added another ignominious setback to their ledger, failing to sign a long-term contract extension with Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
A four-time All-Star, a son of a Hall of Famer and the franchise’s most prominent player, Guerrero imposed a Monday night deadline to get a deal done, hoping to conclude a high-stakes negotiation that at times had grown contentious. Even as the deadline passed without an agreement, the two sides kept working.
But on Tuesday morning, when position players were set to arrive in Dunedin, Fla., for camp, Guerrero still did not have a deal, telling reporters that he does not plan to negotiate with the Blue Jays during the season. With that, the parties seemingly resigned themselves to even more awkwardness.
“They had their numbers, I had my numbers.”
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. confirms he and the Blue Jays did not reach an agreement on a contract extension before his Monday-night deadline. pic.twitter.com/97Ci90EOSV
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) February 18, 2025
The situation around Guerrero, who turns 26 next month, had cast a shadow over an organization that endured another tortured offseason of missing prominent free agents. Now, Guerrero is slated to reach the open market at season’s end, though he will now be subjected to trade rumors that will only grow in intensity at the first sign of struggle for the team.
Bo Bichette, another homegrown talent, also remains on track to reach free agency after the season. He is coming off a subpar year. Bichette and Guerrero arrived in the big leagues expecting to become anchors for a lineup that would be strong enough to compete for the division year after year. Instead, both appear likely to start the season in limbo, in what could be the final chapter of their time together.
A season after finishing 74-88 and out of the postseason, the Blue Jays made a run at Juan Soto and Roki Sasaki, only to be spurned. It was a replay of the previous offseason when the Blue Jays infamously tried to sign Shohei Ohtani. It was against that backdrop that the Blue Jays then struggled to gain traction in extension talks with Guerrero.
Via free agency, Toronto added slugger Anthony Santander, who is coming off a 44-homer season with the Baltimore Orioles. Andrés Giménez, acquired from Cleveland, provides a sterling glove in the infield. Veteran Max Scherzer joins a rotation that features Kevin Gausman, José Berríos, Chris Bassitt and Bowden Francis. In the bullpen, the trio of Jeff Hoffman, Yimi Garcia and Josh Walker provide even more depth to a solid group.
Still, it’s unclear whether the Blue Jays have added enough talent to compete in what could be a treacherous AL East.
Guerrero had signed a one-year deal worth $28.5 million to avoid arbitration this season, though that agreement offered some indication that he was due for a payday. That one-year deal was the third-largest contract ever awarded to an arbitration-eligible player. Only Soto ($31 million in 2024) and Ohtani ($30 million in 2023) had done better. Of course, both went on to secure their riches in free agency, a path that Guerrero is now primed to follow.
In 2019, Guerrero debuted as a 20-year-old third baseman, though his best season came two years later after having switched to first base. He finished second in AL MVP voting during his otherworldly 2021 campaign, when he led the league in homers (48), on-base percentage (.401), slugging (.601) and OPS (1.002). Though he made the All-Star team the next two seasons, his production didn’t match his breakout.
Last year, however, Guerrero hit 30 homers and knocked in 103 runs. His adjusted OPS was 166, his highest since posting a 167 OPS+ in 2021.
Since Guerrero’s debut, the Blue Jays have qualified for the playoffs three times, though they did not collect a victory in those appearances. Last year, the club took a step backward, finishing in last place in the AL East.
This story will be updated.
(Top photo of Vladimir Guerrero Jr: Julian Avram / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
