Report: Blue Jays, Guerrero Jr. Avoid Arbitration With One-Year Deal
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wasn't going anywhere.
The 2021 American League MVP runner-up wasn't going to be non-tendered during his first shot at salary arbitration, and finalizing a 2022 contract was close to a formality. Instead of allowing the young first basemen to go to salary arbitration, the Toronto Blue Jays and Guerrero settled on a one-year contract that will pay him $7.9 million, per MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.
The contract is exactly the amount projected by MLB Trade Rumors 2022 arbitration estimates, and just shy of the $8.5 million payout Washington Nationals outfielder Juan Soto received during his first shot at arb in 2021. We recently looked at how Soto's progression and potential Nats extension could set the bar for a Blue Jays long-term deal with Guerrero.
Guerrero's first contract above the league minimum comes after he led the American League in runs, home runs, on-base percentage, and OPS last year. The just-turned 23-year-old was a first-time All-Star in 2021, winning the Silver Slugger Award at first base and falling short in MVP voting to two-way star Shohei Ohtani.
Debuting 40 games into the 2019 season, Guerrero Jr. will have three more years of arbitration eligibility after 2022. If the young Toronto slugger keeps up his offensive production from last year, he could challenge for the $27 million arbitration record set by Mookie Betts in 2020 by his fourth year in the process, barring an extension.
At the time of Guerrero's reported agreement, the Jays have also settled arbitration cases with 3B Matt Chapman, OF Teoscar Hernández, INF/OF Cavan Biggio, P Ross Stripling, and RP Trevor Richards.
Mitch Bannon is a baseball reporter for Sports Illustrated covering the Toronto Blue Jays and their minor league affiliates.Twitter: @MitchBannon