Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Predicted to Earn $450 Million Mega Extension

The Toronto Blue Jays failed to extend Vladimir Guerrero Jr. this winter, allowing him to enter free agency next offseason. During an offseason appearance on Abriendo Sports, Guerrero noted that he would not negotiate an extension after spring training started. While he is set up for free agency, he has indicated his desire to play for the Blue Jays for the remainder of his career. Perhaps that desire is enough to get an extension done during the season.

“I want to be here,” Guerrero told MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson after failing to agree to an extension. “I want to be a Blue Jay for the rest of my career.”

Guerrero could force the Blue Jays into making a substantial offer by starting the season off strong. It’s no secret the Blue Jays have struggled to land star players in free agency. The only way to ensure they will keep Guerrero is to keep him from hitting the open market. The Athletic’s Tim Britton projected that it would take a 15-year, $450 million deal to keep Guerrero in Toronto.

“Extending a deal for a massive 14 free-agent years would limit the AAV just a touch, to about $30 million,” wrote Britton. “I know, I know: A deal that long comes off as crazy. But there have been a dozen players who have signed deals at least nine years in length in the last three offseasons — or just shy of the number of contracts that long that were signed over the prior decade. Four of them (Juan Soto, Trea Turner, Manny Machado and Xander Bogaerts) extend through a player’s age-40 season, as this one would for Guerrero.”

The Blue Jays may have to overpay to keep Guerrero from testing free agency. However, the Blue Jays may not have to come near the value of Juan Soto’s new contract with the Mets. During an interview with ESPN’s Enrique Rojas and Ernesto Jerez, Guerrero said the final figure he and his camp presented the Blue Jays was less than $600 million in total value.

“It’s much less than Soto. We’re talking about many fewer millions than Soto, more than a hundred million less. … It was the same number of years, but it didn’t reach ($600 million),” Guerrero told ESPN. “The last number we gave them as a counteroffer didn’t reach 600.”

Keeping Guerrero in Toronto should be the Blue Jays’ top priority. It could take around $550 million to extend him in the middle of the season. However, the added price would likely be necessary to convince him to not test free agency.

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