Being “Seduced” by Yankees & Juan Soto Trade, Blue Jays GM Clears Stance on Vladimir Guerrero Jr’s Loyalty

Toronto Blue Jays fans might agree—for a minute there, it felt like they might need to start making breakup songs over Vladimir Guerrero Jr. leaving, didn’t it? Mostly after Vladdy wasn’t shy when the extension talks halted and he said, “They had their numbers; I had my numbers.” The team and he didn’t get to a middle ground, and Guerrero Jr. honestly looked annoyed at the interviews. But then—bam!

A 14-year, half-a-billion-dollar contract he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays. It honestly was a surprise, because Jays are not known to spend an arm and a leg. And it even changed the first baseman market, because no one before him got paid such a sweet deal. His contract featured no deferred money, no strings, just cold money with a lot of zeroes.

Yet behind the scenes, it wasn’t all champagne. GM Ross Atkins just revealed how things got close to not happening.

“Everyone loves attention, to be seduced by the thought of coming into Yankee Stadium or the Mets’ stadium and being essentially serenaded. You know, he’s human,” Atkins said at the Baseball Isn’t Boring interview. And it’s hard to argue given the Yankees and Mets were spending money as if it were poker money this off-season. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who once said he would never wear the pinstripes, even took back his stance, saying he could join any team. So it was serious.

Atkins also knew that it wasn’t going to be easy to lock a deal. The fact is, even though Vladimir had a good season, the team had a down year. The Toronto Blue Jays finished in last place in the American League East with a 74-88 record.

Thoughts of Juan Soto also swirled around Atkins’ head on what exactly will happen. However, he mentioned, “There was no doubt in my mind that Vladdy wanted to be a Blue Jay for life. He added, “But I think the Juan Soto signing, you know, some of the things that were happening in the industry, and us coming off of a down year—I think those things were weighing on him,” said Atkins.

Well, the aura of the Big Apple really can rattle even the most grounded player, but definitely, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. chose loyalty over moving elsewhere. And Atkins couldn’t be more thrilled. And he even appreciated their franchise cornerstone for all the professionalism he showed over the period.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s bat wakes up the Jays in the AL East chase

It’s no secret that there were plenty of rumors about how broken the relations between the Jays and Vladimir got. However, according to Atkins, those media stories were “dragged out.” However, Atkins gave credit to Vladdy, saying he never let the drama leak into the clubhouse. This belief that Atkins has over his franchise face is not just a new thing–it has been built over a decade. He knows Vladimir Guerrero Jr. from when he was just a teenager. Now in his prime, Vladdy is doing what he was born to do—carry the Jays on his back when it matters most.

The case in point is Thursday night’s game against the Boston Red Sox. For six innings, the Jays’ bats looked like they had taken the night off. They were down 2-0, and they scratched a run in the seventh. But then, at the bottom of the 8th, with two runners on, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. struck a three-run bomb into left center. They won!

It was the moment that reminds you why he is the face of the franchise. After the game, Guerrero gave a sneak peek into the team’s mindset: “We never give up.” And the fans need this belief because the AL East is a jungle, and the Jays are at the thick of it. Three games behind the Yankees and one back from the Red Sox.

Here, every win matters! So, how do you think the next game will go? Let us know in the comments.

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