Toronto Blue Jays fans did not take the news well that Vladimir Guerrero Jr did not sign an offer to stay long-term with the team, and it would indicate that the Dominican will opt for free agency in 2026.
He will be in the eye of the storm for any MLB team that is interested in his services, so it will be interesting to see his individual performances with the Blue Jays.
Fans were definitely disappointed, pointing to the management for not making an effort to keep the baseball player long-term with the franchise. After this strong noise that was generated in social networks, they had to face the consequences.
Ross Atkins justifies Blue Jays management
Ross Atkins, general manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, spoke to the media in a mixed zone and was asked about attempts to sign Vladimir Guerrero Jr to a long-term contract
“The offers we made for Vlad would have been record-breaking and would have made him one of the highest-paid players in the game,” he said, without going into much detail about the numbers that were offered
It is nothing new for the Blue Jays to struggle to extend the contracts of their stars, so many were not surprised by these statements, with many pointing out that the board is looking to wash its hands of external pressure. There are clear examples of Marcus Stroman in his time, Edwin Encarnacion and Josh Donaldson
Toronto could look for another star next year
It will be a very tough loss, but this could give us an indication that the Blue Jays would look for a big name player to replace him in 2026. These theories gain a lot of confidence among fans, as this same team sought Juan Soto offering almost $700 million, but he ultimately decided to move to the Mets
The future of Vladimir Guerrero Jr will be uncertain and will depend on what he does in the upcoming campaign. Only time will tell if the Blue Jays really did everything they could to keep the Dominican in the team’s ranks.
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