Blue Jays: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. open to a long-term contract

According to Hector Gomez of Z101 Digital, first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is hoping the two sides can find a way to make the young superstar a Blue Jays player for a long time.

“I’m open to signing a long term deal with the BlueJays. I feel really happy playing here. I hope something can be done about it this offseason.”

With young stars across the game signing long-term deals like Wander Franco (Rays), Julio Rodriguez (Mariners), and Fernando Tatis Jr. (Padres), Ross Atkins and the Blue Jays front office have yet to join in on the action, with multiple players like Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette still looking for long-term deals.

Guerrero is currently in his first year of arbitration and will be heading to arbitration once again this offseason unless a deal is made, whether it be a short-term bridge type of contract to get through arbitration or something more along the lines of what Tatis Jr. and Rodriguez are signed too. The Montreal-born slugger is not eligible for free agency until after the 2025 season but the longer the club waits to try and extend the superstar, the more difficult (and potentially expensive) the deal is going to be.

According to Hector Gomez, slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is open to signing a long-term contract with the Blue Jays this offseason.

That’s not to say the club hasn’t tried before, as the two sides apparently discussed the topic earlier this season but Guerrero and his reps wanted to wait until the offseason to discuss the possibility of a long-term deal.

Guerrero Jr. has been fantastic since his MLB debut back in 2019, flirting with the MVP Award last season. This year, the slugger went into Thursday’s game against the Rays boasting a .278/.342/.485 slash line with 28 home runs and 84 RBI on the year to go along with a .827 OPS through 565 at-bats. He also recently passed the 100 home run mark during yesterday’s game and at 23 years old, is primed to be one of the best players across the league for years to come.

Defensively, Guerrero has made strides at first base, earning recognition from across the league for his play at first base via Baseball America’s Best Tools voting and sports a .991 fielding percentage on the year with a 4 bDRS.

While I won’t try and speculate what a potential contract would look like, it wouldn’t be outrageous to think Guerrero Jr. breaks the $300 million mark, depending on the length of the deal. One thing is for certain: Blue Jays fans want Guerrero Jr. to be a Blue Jay for life (and it looks like he does as well) and at this point, there is no reason the front office shouldn’t pursue the idea this offseason.