Vlad Guerrero Jr. tells Ross Atkins clock is ticking with subtle dig no one saw coming

The Toronto Blue Jays lost out on free agent Alex Bregman, who signed with the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night for three years and $120 million. While whiffing on Bregman shouldn't have too big of an impact, it's just the latest example of a player Toronto coveted signing elsewhere. It's a familiar story those who root for and cover the team know all too well, let alone any players heavily invested in the Jays success, like Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Guerrero Jr. and the Blue Jays are at a standstill, with the former looking for a contract offer north of $450 million, and the latter unwilling to meet him at that price point. The longer Ross Atkins waits to sign Guerrero Jr., the higher his asking price will go. If Guerrero Jr. reaches free agency next winter, all bets are off, as the Blue Jays could be setting themselves for another Juan Soto-sized disappointment.

Vladdy has a self-imposed deadline of the start of spring training to negotiate an extension. Whether he meant to or not, he applied even more pressure on the Blue Jays and Atkins to get a deal done with his latest social media post.

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Whether he meant to or not, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put more pressure on the Blue Jays

Guerrero Jr. was merely counting down the days until spring training, which should not be misconstrued as an insincere message to the Blue Jays front office. That being said, doesn't such a post double as exactly that? The circumstances don't help matters, and the smart money (not Vladdy's) is on these two sides waiting until the last minute to really get into the nitty gritty of a possible extension. As of this writing, it doesn't look likely.

The 25-year-old is coming off one of the best seasons of his career. Guerrero Jr. finished the season with 6.2 WAR, a .940 OPS and a 166 OPS+. He is a four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger. He's finished top-6 in AL MVP voting twice, including a sixth-place finish in 2024. His numbers are not getting worse, meaning if he makes it to free agency and puts together another average year by his standards, he'll receive far more than the Jays are comfortable with at this very moment.

If Toronto cannot extend Guerrero Jr., and they aren't in the AL East race by the trade deadline, there is a decent case to be made in trading Vladdy as a rental in hopes of getting something back in return for a generational talent. That's what makes Guerrero Jr.'s countdown all the more vital.