“Sad News”: Blue Jays dealt brutal $33.6 million star contract blow ahead of trade deadline

Things aren’t looking great in Toronto.

The Toronto Blue Jays are limping through the 2024 MLB season with a 37-43 record, which sees them in last place in the American League East.

With less than a month until the MLB trade deadline, the Blue Jays definitely need to spice things up. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the team is hesitant to sell Bo Bichette or Vladimir Guerrero Jr., despite the possibility of receiving promising prospects in return.

“They’re not going to want to move Bo Bichette and Vlad Guerrero Jr., who both have another year until free agency. However, previous long-term negotiations with both players were reportedly unsuccessful. And those who know the pair feel the Jays have little to no chance of signing Bichette, and perhaps just a little better chance with Guerrero.”

Dealing Guerrero Jr. or Bichette, or both, would send a strong message to fans that competitive baseball may not return to Toronto for some time. The two-time All-Star shortstop is prepping himself for exactly that scenario.

“No. When asked if he was surprised to be traded, Bichette responded, “Not at all.” That response, while perfectly normal and realistic, may add to fans’ distress.

There are multiple contenders who may desire Bichette’s bat. The Blue Jays find themselves in quite the pickle, one that cannot be so easily fixed. Anxiety is bound to be high no matter what route this franchise takes at the MLB trade deadline. But Bichette needs to stay focused on what he can control, which is regaining his All-Star form amid a terrible season.

Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. walks back anti-Yankees talk

The Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners, and New York Yankees are among the teams reportedly interested in the Jays’ top first baseman.

Guerrero Jr., who previously stated that he would never play for the Yankees, is changing his stance.

Guerrero was asked Monday night if he would revisit his previous comments, with the Blue Jays in last place in the American League East.

“Sometimes one says something. “I am not trying to retract what I said about the Yankees,” Guerrero told Virus Deportivo on Monday. “But it’s a business. I got down and talked to my father [Vladimir Guerrero Sr.] and my family, and this is a business. And I promised never to discuss this matter again, yet many people have questioned me about it.”

In 2022, Guerrero Jr. stated that he would “never sign with the Yankees—not even dead.” In 2023, he explained to the New York Post that it was a personal matter involving his family. “I’d never change that.”

The Yankees are searching for a fix at first base after Anthony Rizzo suffered a broken right forearm, He is expected to be out until August. In the meantime, New York acquired J.D. Davis in a trade with the Oakland Athletics, and they also called up Ben Rice from the minors.