Potential Red Sox Target Offers Details Of Blue Jays Contract Talks
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow always is thinking long-term for the Red Sox, which means Boston could be in the sweepstakes for a star slugger.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Toronto Blue Jays failed to reach an agreement on a contract extension. That sets up a big 2026 offseason with multiple teams expected to try to sign the four-time All-Star.
There’s been speculation about what it could cost to sign the 25-year-old, but Guerrero’s insight into his contract negotiations with the Blue Jays might offer an idea.
“It’s much less than (Juan) Soto. We’re talking about many fewer millions than Soto, more than a hundred million less,” Guerrero told ESPN’s Enrique Rojas and Ernesto Jerez. ” … It was the same number of years (as Soto’s contract), but it didn’t reach ($600 million). The last number we gave them as a counteroffer didn’t reach 600.
“I know the business. I lowered the salary demands a bit, but I also lowered the number of years. … I’m looking for 14 (years). I would like 14, 15, even 20 if they give them to me, but doing it the right way.”
Soto signed a 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets. Guerrero could fetch a similar offer, but he seems focused on a long-term deal with a slightly less average annual value.
Of course, with multiple teams expected to bid, the contract number could increase similar to Soto’s. However, Guerrero is confident in his value as one of the top young sluggers in MLB. Whether or not the Red Sox will be in on the seventh-year infielder is too soon to say, but there could be mutual interest
Future Is Now For Boston Red Sox With More Help On Way
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora smiles when he thinks about the upcoming 2025 season.
“It’s about now, not the future,” he said. “We’re having different conversations this year.”
The Red Sox have missed the postseason three straight non-winning seasons since losing to the Houston Astros in the 2021 American League Championship Series. While the franchise never said it was rebuilding – a word that would be taboo with their fans – the Red Sox were certainly at least retrenching.
However, the Red Sox feel they are ready to contend again after making some splash moves since the end of last season, a year in which they had an 81-81 record.
Boston Red Sox Make Big Additions
Infielder Alex Bregman was signed to a three-year, $120-million contract as a free agent in the early days of spring training following the winter signings of right-handed starter Walker Buehler and left-handed reliever Aroldis Chapman.
The Red Sox also sent four players from their bountiful farm system – which should also infuse the major-league club with talent this summer – to acquire left-hander Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox. Crochet had 209 strikeouts in just 146 innings last season when the White Sox carefully monitored his workload while making the transition to starter from reliever.
