The Boston Red Sox could have a major upper hand next offseason.
Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow dug deep in the Juan Soto sweepstakes, hoping to land Boston’s next superstar bat. That fell short, despite a multi-hour meeting and a contract offer rumored to be in the $700 million ballpark. This time, word on the street claims the Red Sox are viewed as a preferred signing destination for Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who’s set to become a free agent in 2026.
“If Guerrero doesn’t receive an extension by spring training, he’ll test free agency,” USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported Tuesday. “If Guerrero doesn’t return to the Blue Jays, he would love to be with the Red Sox, friends say, which may be why the Red Sox are hesitant in their pursuit of (Alex) Bregman.”
Guerrero, a four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger Award recipient, checks several boxes. He’s young at 25 years old, well-established as one of MLB’s most elite hitters and he’s spent the entirety of his six-year career playing in the American League East. That’s also granted Guerrero plenty of experience — 45 games, in fact — playing at Fenway Park.
He’s a career .356 hitter with 10 home runs, 25 walks and 44 RBIs across 206 plate appearances in Boston’s home turf.
Like Red Sox franchise star Rafael Devers, Guerrero is a native of the Dominican Republic. He intended to join Devers in representing the Dominican Republic in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, but due to right knee discomfort, he withdrew. Boston skipper Alex Cora, one of six active Latino managers in MLB, is also known to connect well with players, especially those of Latin-American descent.
Cora has spoken highly of Guerrero, ever since the left-handed hitter broke onto the scene as a rookie in Toronto in 2019.
“He dominates the strike zone,” Cora said five years ago, per The Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham. “Right now, his swing rate at the edges is up there. But when he dominates the strike zone, he’s very dangerous. You can see the quickness of the bat. For such a big guy he moves very well. He has fun, too, doing it. He’s smiling all the time, which is great.”
Pairing Guerrero with Devers for the future could position the Red Sox to form their next great Dominican-born one-two punch since David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez helped deliver two World Series titles to Boston in 2004 and 2007. That’s what Ortiz aimed to accomplish with his involvement in the Soto pursuit, but now with Soto joining the New York Mets, the Red Sox might have themselves a second chance.
Guerrero is set to earn $28 million this upcoming season with the Blue Jays.
Then again, the Red Sox could just trade for Guerrero this offseason to get ahead of free agency.
