Every Major League team, to some degree, is looking ahead to next offseason and free agency. It’s all part of the planning process.
It’s likely most teams, including the Texas Rangers, are planning for how they might pursue next offseason’s top target, Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Guerrero and the Blue Jays couldn’t reach a deal on an extension in February and he won’t take up talks again until after the season. On Tuesday, the Rangers received a glimpse of what it might take to get the All-Star to join the franchise.
ESPN reported that Guerrero told the outlet that his asking price was less than $600 million. The Athletic (subscription required) put a finer point on the specifics. It reported that Guerrero wanted a deal with a net present value of $500 million to not test the open market.
That would have meant no deferrals, or at least deferrals that wouldn’t impact the net present value. In other words, he didn’t want the Shohei Ohtani treatment when it came to the deal. Ohtani signed a $700 million deal with $680 million in deferred money. Ohtani’s net present value for the dela is $438 million.
The New York Post (subscription required) reported the Blue Jays’ counter offer featured deferrals and lowered the net present value to no more than $450 million. Guerrero said no.
While Guerrero won’t hit the open market until November, the reporting does appear to set a starting point for conversations with any team — $500 million in present-day money.
For perspective, that is $150 million more than the 10-year, $325 million deal Corey Seager signed with the Rangers in 2021. He is in the fourth year of that deal and it has no deferrals.
Guerrero doesn’t appear to be trying to set a new mark for contracts. Juan Soto’s $765 million from the New York Mets appears unapproachable. But it appears a deal that exceeds Ohtani’s net present value is on his mind, and any interested team would have to find a way to make that happen.
The Rangers have connections. His father, Vlad Sr., played for the Rangers in 2010 when they made their first World Series. His little brother, Pablo, is in the Rangers’ minor-league system. He’s expected to be at Class-A Hickory this season.
The soon-to-be 26-year-old has a slash line of .288/.363/.500/.863 with 160 home runs and 507 RBI in six seasons. He’s made four All-Star Game appearances, won two Silver Sluggers and a Gold Glove.
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