Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has made a major decision regarding his future as he enters his final season before he becomes eligible for free agency.
Guerrero has made clear that he would not be willing to negotiate a long-term contract once spring training starts, and is sticking to that deadline. As a result, the star first baseman confirmed Tuesday that he and the Blue Jays failed to reach an agreement prior to his self-imposed deadline.
As a result, Guerrero intends to test free agency at the end of the season.
Guerrero added that he and the Blue Jays had never even come particularly close to an agreement, suggesting significant distance between the two sides in talks.
Thus, the Blue Jays are faced with the prospect of potentially losing their franchise cornerstone at the end of this season. The team could still retain Guerrero, but they will not be the only team that can talk to him, removing a significant advantage they had previously.
Guerrero has long said he would be happy to stay with Toronto for the remainder of his career. However, he also wants a fair deal, and did not make it sound like he was inclined to give the Blue Jays any sort of hometown discount. The statement that the two sides never even came close would certainly suggest that Guerrero stuck to that during recent talks.
A four-time All-Star, Guerrero hit .323 with 30 home runs and 103 RBIs in 2024. As things stand, he would hit free agency prior to the start of his age 27 season, putting himself in line for a massive payday, be it from Toronto or someone else.
The Blue Jays have become notorious in recent years for whiffing on top free agent targets. The prospect of losing Guerrero, however, might be the most painful miss of all of them.
