Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has reportedly signed the third-largest contract in Major League Baseball history, likely making him a member of the Toronto Blue Jays for the rest of his career. A sports marketing expert says this, and other recent large expenditures, shows that Rogers Communications is investing in its future.
Colin McDougall, a marketing lecturer at Western University's Ivey Business School in London, Ont., said the 14-year deal, US$500-million deal Guerrero and the Blue Jays agreed to late Sunday appears to be part of a broader strategy where Rogers, the team's owner, is betting on itself. That plan includes a new exclusive agreement to broadcast the NHL in Canada worth $11 billion and renovations to Rogers Centre, Toronto's ballpark, for between $300 and $400 million.
"I think characterizing it as an investment is a good way to think about it," said McDougall on Monday of the Guerrero deal. "It's incumbent then on management to figure out how to generate or make sure that the return is there and that'll take some time.
"But if you think about the investment that they've made in renovating (Rogers Centre) and then pretend that you're poor, or try to cut costs on the budget on the team, that doesn't make any logical sense."
The 26-year-old Guerrero was born in Montreal but plays internationally for the Dominican Republic. He was signed by the Blue Jays as a 16-year-old in July 2015.
Guerrero is a career .287 hitter with 160 home runs over his seven MLB seasons. He's a two-time Silver Slugger winner, earned a Gold Glove in 2022 and was runner-up in American League MVP voting in 2021.
He's in the final year of his current contract and, without an extension, would've become a free agent this off-season.
Guerrero will make $28.5 million in 2025. But when his new deal kicks in next year, it will have a $35.71-million average annual value and will last until 2039, when he is 40.
It's the third time Toronto has chased a major deal.
The Blue Jays fell short in 2023 when they tried to sign Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani and failed again this past winter when trying to land Juan Soto of the Dominican Republic.
Soto ended up joining the New York Mets for an MLB-record $765-million, 15-year deal with the New York Mets. Ohtani's $700-million, 10-year agreement with the Los Angeles Dodgers is the second biggest in league history.
"I can certainly see how people on the outside would say, 'Well, that seems like an awful lot of money. How are they gonna make it work?'" said McDougall. "But the TV rights deals continue to climb, as does the importance of live sports as it pertains to people retaining their cable.
"If you amortize the cost of those, maybe you lose a little on the team, but if you're Rogers, if it means retaining the grassroots customer connected to cable, I think it's a small price to pay."
Guerrero's extension is not yet confirmed by the team but has been widely reported. It will likely be made official when Toronto kicks off a six-game homestand against the Atlanta Braves and Seattle Mariners next Monday.
The deal is the most lucrative in franchise history, surpassing the $150-million contract outfielder George Springer signed as a free agent in January 2021.
It's also significantly longer than any other deal the Blue Jays have agreed to under the leadership of president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins. Pitcher Jose Berrios signed a seven-year extension with Toronto in 2021 and Springer's deal is for six years.
McDougall's father, Don McDougall, was the president of the Labatt Brewing Company in the 1970s and was part of the successful big to bring MLB to Toronto in 1976. The older McDougall was the team's founding director.
The younger McDougall pointed out that when the Blue Jays won back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993 they had one of the largest payrolls in baseball.
"They were never shy about going and getting the biggest, most expensive free agents and they had a track record of doing so," he said. "I think they proved over and over again that it was worth it by filling the stadium consistently every night and getting everybody at home across the country to watch them.
"The other thing I think that dovetails into this discussion too, is the Blue Jays, they're the only game in town for baseball in the country so from a fan base perspective it's a very different thing than perhaps a regional hockey team."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 7, 2025.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
