The Toronto Blue Jays are having a horrific season in 2024. Though the goal at the outset was to contend for a championship, it will now be a miracle if Toronto is able to avoid last place.
The list of disappointments for the Blue Jays this season is too long to count, but one player assuredly does not belong among them. First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been tremendous this season, especially in the second half.
After two mediocre seasons by his standards, Guerrero has rebounded to his 2021 form, when he finished second behind Shohei Ohtani in the American League MVP race. He leads all first basemen in every major offensive category and recently reeled off a 22-game hit streak.
Though Guerrero's success has been a source of pride for the Blue Jays, it also serves as a reminder. Guerrero is not yet committed to staying in Toronto long-term, and one insider believes it will take an enormous sum to keep him there.
Steve Phillips, a former big-league general manager and current insider for TSN, predicted Monday that Guerrero will command at least a 10-year extension, with a goal salary of $30 million per year.
If it takes $30 million a year and it takes 10 or 11 years, I'm going there to get it done. At this time and place for the Blue Jays, I think it's where they need to go," Phillips said.
Guerrero is making $19.9 million this season, a record for the Blue Jays for a player in his arbitration years. That figure will certainly go up in 2025, whether in arbitration or in the first year of a new extension.
Phillips also stressed that if the Blue Jays are committed to getting an extension done, they will have to do so before the 2025 season begins.
"This off-season is critical because once you start playing again, he might as well wait," Phillips said. "If you want to get him, you've got to get him now because the price is only going to go up when he gets to free agency."
So although the Blue Jays may not be playing critical games for the rest of this season, there is still important work to be done. The future of the first base position could be up in the air if Toronto doesn't act quickly with respect to Guerrero's contract.
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