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Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. blasts second-level homer vs. Diamondbacks
The post Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. blasts second-level homer vs. Diamondbacks appeared first on ClutchPoints. Toronto Blue Jays star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. blasted a second-level home run to put his team up 2-0 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The four-time All-Star has had a relatively quiet season by his standards, but he's still on pace to make the Midsummer Classic once again. The Blue Jays are right in the thick of the playoff race at 38-33, trying to keep up with several teams in the American League East. Advertisement To get back to the postseason for the third time in four years, Toronto will need Guerrero Jr. to hit another gear in the second half of the season, which is usually a reliable bet. Fortunately, the 26-year-old showed a very positive sign with this no-doubter against Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon Pfaadt. The Blue Jays are in the middle of the pack in terms of their prowess at the plate and on the mound. That said, there are plenty of talented players on this roster, especially in the lineup, who should continue improving as the season progresses. And it will be a season-long war for the division crown, with how things are shaping up. The New York Yankees currently lead the AL East at 42-29, but have been in a rut recently. Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox have been on a tear and are above .500. Boston may have just completed a shocking trade of three-time All-Star Rafael Devers, but it still has a talented roster capable of sneaking into the Wild Card. Speaking of the Wild Card, plenty of dangerous teams like the Cleveland Guardians and Seattle Mariners are lurking. Advertisement Overall, it's a long season, and the Blue Jays are currently undergoing an evaluation period. They will need to decide whether to be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline. The front office will very likely be a buyer, especially with the team's current spot and the fact that Guerrero Jr. and plenty of other key contributors on the roster are squarely in their primes. And Toronto could use some more quality arms, specifically in their bullpen, and another power hitter before July 31st. Overall, Guerrero Jr. showcased his trademark power on Tuesday. The first baseman is the clear face of this franchise, and this team will go as far as he does. It's a long road to October, but Toronto is still firmly in the hunt, and the time to move up in the AL East is now, with the way the Yankees have been struggling. Related: Blue Jays get mixed injury updates on Max Scherzer, Anthony Santander Related: Max Scherzer's stern take after rehab start for Blue Jays
Fox Sports
09-04-2025
- Business
- Fox Sports
Inside Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s $500 million contract
Details have emerged on the makeup of the 14-year, $500 million extension that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Toronto Blue Jays agreed to earlier this week. And those details are surprising, for a number of reasons. Per Ken Rosenthal and The Athletic , of the $500 million the Jays will pay Guerrero Jr. between now and 2039, a whopping $325 million of it will be paid as a signing bonus instead of as salary. The first $20 million signing bonus is set to be paid within 30 days, even though the contract doesn't actually begin until 2026. As Rosenthal detailed, there are two reasons why Guerrero would prefer to have $325 million of his deal paid out in a signing bonus rather than as salary. The first is that he lives in Florida, a state without income tax, and signing bonuses are paid to an athlete's state of residence instead of where they perform their work. Professional athletes' taxes, if you were not aware, basically require an accountant because of how many states they end up working in over the course of a year — the signing bonus allows Guerrero Jr. to be paid the actual value of the deal sans income tax for the vast majority of its $500 million total. [Related: With Vladimir Guerrero Jr. extended, who's left in 2026's free agent class?] The second reason has to do with the potential for any kind of work stoppage, be it via a lockout when the current collective bargaining agreement ends after the 2026 season, or due to some kind of league-wide disaster, like the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Unlike a salary, a signing bonus is paid without being "contingent on the performance of services." Meaning, games don't need to actually be scheduled for Guerrero Jr. to receive these payments, whereas his salary payments are contingent on there being baseball. While Rosenthal says it is "unclear" what benefit the Blue Jays receive from agreeing to this hefty stipulation, it might be as simple as it's how the deal ended up getting done. Guerrero Jr. and the Jays had broken off negotiations back when spring training began, which was the first baseman's deadline. The two sides kept working at it in the following months, however, and it's entirely possible that Guerrero's asking price dropped a bit in exchange for this guaranteed bit of security via signing bonus. What remains unknown is how Canada itself feels about this news. As Sportsnet detailed in 2024, the Canada Revenue Agency has an ongoing court case against the Toronto Maple Leafs' John Tavares, over a revised tax bill and a dispute about whether his signing bonus actually constitutes a signing bonus. That case was brought to court over a $15.25 million payment that was part of a nearly $71 million signing bonus. Guerrero Jr.'s signing bonus is considerably larger, but whether that will attract the attention of the Canadian government is unknown at this time. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account , and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! recommended Get more from Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more in this topic
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Guerrero Jr.'s $500M Blue Jays Deal Widens AL East Resource Gap
PHOENIX — When a player agrees to a 14-year, $500 million extension, as Toronto's Vladimir Guerrero Jr. reportedly did Sunday night, the signing has a ripple effect. The American League East, almost always led in spending by the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, now has another club knocking at the vault door. Advertisement More from How does that make the more reserved Baltimore Orioles feel, especially after they followed last year's 91-win season with the free-agent losses of ace right-hander Corbin Burnes and Anthony Santander, the latter of whom signed with the Blue Jays? Considering Guerrero Jr. has hit more home runs against Baltimore (27) than any other MLB club, not very good. 'I don't like seeing Vladdy 13 times a year,' Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said before his team opened a three-game series Monday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team that added Burnes this past offseason. 'If he wanted to go to Cleveland or San Diego that certainly would have been perfectly fine with me.' But Guerrero didn't go; after a winter of nip-and-tuck negotiations, he decided to remain in Canada. Toronto has, for years, been aching for a superstar to stay in its midst. Fans thought the organization had pulled off the remarkable signing of Shohei Ohtani two offseasons ago only for the Los Angeles Dodgers to swipe the two-way star. Advertisement Unlike Ohtani's deal, Guerrero Jr.'s reportedly comes without deferrals. The size of these top-end deals in MLB appear beyond what a team like the Orioles are willing to shell out at this point, although their player payroll for luxury tax purposes has jumped to $181.4 million, No. 15 in MLB, from last year's $126.7 million, per Spotrac. The Blue Jays, with a player payroll for luxury tax purposes of $267.8 million, have slid between the Yankees ($309.5 million) and the Red Sox ($247.9 million). 'It's the AL East for a reason, and there are superstars in the middle of just about every batting order,' Hyde said. Except maybe the Rays, who don't have a permanent home right now in the Tampa Bay area and are trying to compete with all these big spenders at $100.6 million. Advertisement Before signing, Guerrero was in his last year before free agency and earning $28.5 million this season. Now, his base salary will be $35.5 million for the next 14 seasons. That's nowhere near the $51 million the New York Mets are paying Juan Soto for through 2039, or the $40 million Aaron Judge is earning from the Yanks through 2031. But comparatively, the Orioles, who won 102 games and the division with an $89.4 million payroll two years ago, have Tyler O'Neill at $16.5 million a year as their highest-paid player. 'I think when teams spend on players, it's good for baseball,' O'Neill said in a clubhouse interview Monday night about Guerrero's contract. 'It forces the rest of the league to be competitive in that regard as well. 'You want to see owners going out to make their teams better. At the end of the day, it's the Major Leagues, and you want to compete against the best. That's my take on that. I think it's good for the game and good for the players as a whole.' Advertisement Best of Sign up for Sportico's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
