The problem that plagues sports such as soccer has become a nightmare for the Toronto Blue Jays: the young prospects from their farms do not emerge to the extent that the team requires, and this coupled with the injuries to their star players, has become a snowball in which their first baseman, Dominican Vladimir Guerrero Jr., has been caught in this free agency.
The financial challenges of retaining Guerrero
The problem is not simple and has several edges. It was thought that the renewal of the son of the legendary Hall of Famer was going to take place automatically and without surprises, but keeping him would affect his total competitive balance tax threshold, since the luxury tax payroll currently amounts to $273.3 million. Going beyond that with Guerrero and if Alex Bregman were to be added would mean the Blue Jays would pay an additional tax and affect their farm system, which is not giving them what they expect.
Another drawback is that Guerrero’s sporting arguments speak for themselves, as his season has been very good, with 616 AB, a .323 average and 103 RBIs, numbers that, however, have not made the difference on the field where the Blue Jays also suffer seriously with injuries to key players such as Brandon Barriera, Landen Maroudis or starter Ricky Tiedemann, who underwent Tommy John surgery, not to mention the PED suspension of Orelvis Martinez.
A problem the Blue Jays must solve
This is where you would think young talent would step in, but players like Alan Roden, Arjun Nimmala and Josh Kasevich have not been up to the task and the Blue Jays are suffering, especially since the decision they make with Guerrero will have consequences, and although it is expected that as is customary for him, he will not disappoint, no one in the franchise is completely sure that in the medium term things will begin to improve collectively.
The improvement does depend on Vladimir Guerrero, but also on other signings that will support this movement that is necessary, despite the cost it will have, for the benefit of the team in the search for a season not only winning, but also aiming for the Playoffs.
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