DUNEDIN, Fla. — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has revealed that his proposal for a long-term contract with the Toronto Blue Jays was less than $600 million. In a recent interview, Guerrero, a four-time All-Star, addressed speculation that he sought a contract similar to the $765 million, 15-year deal that his fellow player Juan Soto secured with the New York Mets. Guerrero, who will celebrate his 26th birthday on March 16, settled on a $28.5 million, one-year contract in January and faces the possibility of becoming a free agent following the World Series. He decided to end discussions on a long-term contract upon arriving at spring training the previous month.
In the ESPN interview, Guerrero clarified that while he requested a contract of the same duration as Soto’s, he was asking for significantly less money, specifically over a hundred million less than Soto. Guerrero also stated that his final offer did not reach the $600 million mark and mentioned that he had even reduced the length of the proposed contract to 14 years.
Guerrero had an impressive performance last season, achieving a .323 batting average with a .396 on-base percentage, a .544 slugging percentage, 30 home runs, and 103 RBIs over 159 games. Throughout his career, he has maintained a batting average of .288, an on-base percentage of .363, a slugging percentage of .500, with 160 home runs and 507 RBIs in 819 regular-season games, all played with Toronto.
In 2021, Guerrero finished second in the American League MVP voting. That year, he led the majors in total bases (363), shared the lead in home runs (48), and topped the AL in both on-base percentage (.401) and slugging percentage (.601).
