@movernie
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Waking up this morning and to hear what every Toronto Blue Jays have hoped for, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. agree to 14-year, $500M deal with the Toronto Blue Jays.
This is definitely a massive relief for the Jays Fans, Jays Management & Ownership and of course, Vladdy himself that the home grown super star is willing to stay put and sign with the team that drafted him.
Having Vladdy to sign the dotted line on a long-term contract early in the season is a major relief for many people coz prior to the start of the season, Vladdy has self-imposed a deadline where he clearly said he doesn’t want to negotiate any contract during the season as he would like to stay focus on his game instead.
So…personally, waking up realizing a contract is confirmed and finalized in the 3rd week of this young baseball season is somewhat unexpected but truly appreciated.
Imagine the entire season everyone has to wonder, “Is this a farewell tour for Vladdy before he hits free agency”? We don’t have to worry about that anymore. The Jays Management can now focus on bringing reinforcements during the trading deadline if the Jays are within the playoff race. Also, they can now focus on signing more free agents in the near future knowing Vladdy has committed to play for the Jays for many years to come. With Vladdy’s being the corner stone, hopefully, more free agents are willing to sign with the Blue Jays.
This is also a sign of confidence knowing that Vladdy talk the talk and walk the walk as he has always indicated how much he luvs Toronto and wanted to end his career with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Moreover, this also shows the commitment by the Jays ownership who is committed to pay up and sign quality super stars. And of course, after spending $$$ renovating the Rogers Centre, they surely know they have no choice but to sign Vladdy to ensure they can fill the seats and generate revenue to compensate for the spending they have already committed.
In terms of present value, Guerrero’s contract only trails Juan Soto’s $765-million, 15-year record deal from the New York Mets but jump ahead of Shohei Ohtani’s $700-million, 10-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, based on the deferrals are discounted for Shohei’s contract.
MoVernie QUESTION: Now that Vladdy is locked up long-term, does it influence your views of President Mark Shapiro and General Manager Ross Atkins ability to lead as management?
Personally, and this is my own opinion, I still don’t belief Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins are the right people to lead our team to the promise land. I felt they have failed miserably in evaluating the free agent market, they failed to lock up Vladdy a few years ago when they have a chance to do so. Waiting it out and eventually able to sign Vladdy during early this part of the season to sign him becomes a miracle and the management lucked out.
But they shouldn’t have waited this long to finalize a deal. When Vladdy was playing well in the past few years, they should have lock Vladdy up 3 or 4 years ago. Instead, they waited and waited and saw Shohei and Juan Soto historic massive contract deals have inflated the value of super stars and Vladdy wants more piece of the pie. I mean, I am sure the Jays management could have signed Vladdy to a 14-year, $300 million contract a few years ago, so they did overpaid for Vladdy’s service. Anyhow, it is what it is. At the very least, we got our own homegrown player back who is committed for another 14 years and wanted to retire as a Blue Jay.
Now, the Jays management needs some luck, gamble a bit in the trades and free agents market and really hope the Jays can compete and be on the winning side for many years to come. But at least for 1 day, everyone who is a Jays Fans got their wish and can celebrate and be joyful about Vladdy being committed to play for the Toronto Blue Jays.
