SAN DIEGO – The high drama surrounding Aaron Judge’s future – settled Wednesday when the New York Yankees reportedly ponied up $360 million over nine years to fend off the transformative ambitions of the San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres – is both a sneak peek and cautionary tale for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Imagine for a moment what the 2025 Winter Meetings could be like for them with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Bo Bichette or, gasp, both on the open market at the same time.
As destructive as the reigning AL MVP’s potential departure would be to the Yankees and their competitive window, the possibility of losing two franchise pillars in the same winter would be simply ruinous for the Blue Jays and all they’ve built over the past few years.
The frenzy around Judge, 30, amid an industry suddenly spending like money ain’t a thang, has been omnipresent during the current winter meetings at San Diego’s Manchester Grand Hyatt because of the seismic nature of his decision and the ripples it will cause.
At the Letters
Ben Nicholson-Smith is Sportsnet’s baseball editor. Arden Zwelling is a senior writer. Together, they bring you the most in-depth Blue Jays podcast in the league, covering off all the latest news with opinion and analysis, as well as interviews with other insiders and team members.
Since they aren’t the Yankees – baseball’s flagship franchise for oxygen-sucking hysteria – the Blue Jays won’t be quite the same focal point three years from now. But Guerrero will be 26, Bichette 27 when they’ll be eligible for free agency, and assuming they continue on their current trajectories, the interest around them may match or even exceed the Judge Gong Show.
The uncertainty about their long-term status is relevant enough that Jose Berrios negotiated an opt-out after 2026 into his extension last year to guard against precisely such an outcome.
So, as the Blue Jays grinded through their business Tuesday – missing out on lefty Andrew Heaney to the Texas Rangers and centre-fielder Cody Bellinger to the Chicago Cubs – the need to extend Guerrero and Bichette to avoid such a perilous winter remains in the background.
“It’s unchanged,” Mark Shapiro, the Blue Jays president and CEO, said Tuesday when asked about how the club approaches long-term deals for its young stars. “Continue to dialogue, continue to have those dialogues in private, don’t believe in negotiating in public. Three years is a very long time but we’re also cognizant that three years can come quickly. We’ll take every advantage of what that means to our window to compete and always maintain an openness and a willingness and a desire to keep them here longer.”
Boiler-plate stuff but, to be fair, the time for deeper dives in search of the elusive “sweet spot” that fairly distributes risk between player and club is the spring, once the roster has been bolstered and the winter’s heavy lifting is done.
Still, the industry’s current spending patterns are noteworthy, driving up expectations for cornerstone talents like Guerrero and Bichette while making payroll management all the more critical for clubs.
Hence, Shapiro’s declaration that the sport’s Competitive Balance Tax (CBT) threshold, this season set at $233 million “is not an obstacle for us,” and “is not going to be what sets our budget, managing around that,” marks an especially significant turn.
After all, a year ago Shapiro said running payrolls to or beyond the CBT “is not something that we’re planning for as we sit here and look at the payrolls moving outward,” essentially treating the threshold as a cap. Staying in that range would make trying to build a winning club around a market-rate compensated Guerrero and Bichette extremely difficult, impacting the viability of potential extensions.
Yet this off-season, which could see 8-10 teams around the majors push past the CBT threshold, the Blue Jays have acted like a team willing to not only hit $200 million in major-league payroll for the first time, but also surpass it.
Already they have roughly $175 million on the books in guarantees to 10 players and arbitration estimates for 11 others, and had they succeeded in landing Justin Verlander, that would have tacked on another $40 million to the total.
Once you factor salaries for pre-arbitration players, the $16.5 million for player benefits, 40-man roster salaries and the mechanics of CBT calculation that counts a contract’s annual average value rather than the yearly payout against the threshold, and the Blue Jays would have been right there.
Drastic change. What’s behind that?
“Ownership commitment,” Shapiro said of team owner Rogers Communications Inc., which also owns Sportsnet. “We continue to grow revenues, our partnership revenue has grown, but we are still in this phase where our expenses are outpacing our revenues. When we complete the renovation, we’ll have a greater ability to compete within some of the higher levels of Major League Baseball, not necessarily the top teams in our division from a revenue perspective, but we’ll certainly be able to be more in line with supporting those payrolls.”
Helping underpin that is the new collective bargaining agreement negotiated in the spring which, among other things, allows teams to add sponsored jersey patches to uniform sleeves beginning next season (Shapiro says the Blue Jays are “actively seeking” a partner).
A handful of national deals with Major League Baseball also followed the CBA, creating additional revenue streams, while the Blue Jays expect a deeper local revenue pool once Rogers Centre renovations currently underway are completed after the 2023 season.
“The payoff in revenue is not coming from this phase,” said Shapiro. “It’s going to take a few years for us to produce the revenue that supports the team and supports the cost of the commitment to the renovation as well.”
By that point the Blue Jays, who ranked 11th in the majors in 2022 payroll according to Spotrac.com, could be comfortably ensconced in the 6-10 range, timing up with when it’s time to pay Guerrero and Bichette.
Waiting things out closer to the end of their free agency mitigates the Blue Jays’ risk of making a sizable financial commitment to a player who could get injured and decline, or struggle, or simply not live up to the deal. But it also counters the risk of having to outbid others after watching two elite players become increasingly dominant only to hit the open market for their best years.
The Blue Jays would certainly be able to pivot and spend elsewhere if Guerrero and Bichette were to leave, but players of their calibre are incredibly difficult to replace. Stars carry teams, stars sell and when properly supported, stars win.
If the CBT is indeed no longer going to be an obstacle, the Blue Jays can both pay the type of homegrown duo teams tank for years in the hopes of getting and win, too. The issue then is in finding the right balance between guaranteed money and discount of potential market rate, allowing club and player to share the risk.
“That is exactly what the nature of the long-term contract negotiation of one of your players is all about,” said Shapiro. “It’s where do you both get comfortable with the level of risk, us with what the commitment means and them with what they could potentially be giving up. The closer they get to free agency, the more that changes their equation of risk. It makes them probably less willing to give up the risk of what it means to be out there. … We’re looking for the sweet spot.”
That holds true for the Blue Jays, both in their current off-season pursuits and with their two franchise pillars, who could be to the winter meetings of 2025 what Judge is to the gathering of the moment.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw for 281 yards and five touchdowns, helping the Baltimore Ravens overcome an early double-digit deficit and extend their National Football League winning streak to five games with a 41-31 victory Monday night over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who lost their top two receivers to injuries.
The two-time NFL MVP improved to 23-1 against NFC teams, the best mark by a quarterback against an opposing conference in NFL history. He’s 3-0 against the Bucs (4-3), who faded after taking a 10-0 lead with help from the 100th TD reception of Mike Evans’ career.
Evans departed with a hamstring injury after Baker Mayfield tried to connect with him in the end zone again, and late in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach, leading Bucs receiver Chris Godwin was carted off the field with a left ankle injury. ESPN declined to show replays of Godwin’s injury, which appeared to be severe.
Jackson completed 17 of 22 passes without an interception, including TD throws of nine and four yards to Mark Andrews. He also tossed scoring passes of 49 yards to Rashod Bateman, 18 yards to Justice Hill and 11 yards to Derrick Henry, who rushed for 169 yards on 15 carries. Bateman had four catches for 121 yards.
The Ravens (5-2) rebounded from a slow start on defence, with cornerback Marlon Humphrey turning the game around with a pair of second-quarter interceptions — one of them in the Baltimore end zone. Jackson led a four-play, 80-yard TD drive after the first pick, and the second interception set up Justin Tucker’s 28-yard field goal for a 17-10 halftime lead.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
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CARDINALS 17 CHARGERS 15
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray ran for a 44-yard touchdown and led the Cardinals on a drive that set up Chad Ryland’s 32-yard field goal as time expired, and Arizona rallied for a win over Los Angeles.
Cameron Dicker kicked his fifth field goal of the night — this one from 40 yards — to give the Chargers a 15-14 lead with 1:54 left. But the Cardinals (3-4) quickly moved into field goal range, aided by an unnecessary roughness call on Cam Hart that cost Los Angeles (3-3) 15 yards.
Arizona followed that with a bruising 33-yard run by James Conner, who finished with 101 yards on the ground. That eventually set up Ryland’s short field goal and a Cardinals celebration.
It was a frustrating night for the Chargers’ offence, which gained 395 yards but couldn’t find the end zone. Justin Herbert completed 27 of 39 passes for 349 yards.
Dicker booted field goals of 59, 50, 28, 47 and 40 yards, the first of which tied a franchise record for distance.
Murray ran for a spectacular touchdown early in the fourth quarter, rolling to his left before turning on the jets, beating safety Junior Colston to the sideline and then coasting into the end zone for a 14-9 lead.
It was Murray’s second long touchdown run in three weeks after he scored on a 50-yard sprint against San Francisco. It was also Murray’s 20th career game with a touchdown pass and run.
Murray completed 14 of 26 passes for 145 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps have been here before — literally and figuratively.
With the season hanging in the balance, the ‘Caps were dealt a blow last week when the club learned it wouldn’t be able to play a post-season wild-card game in its home stadium, B.C. Place, due to a scheduling conflict.
The Whitecaps ceded home field advantage to their regional rival, the Portland Timbers. The two clubs will battle for the final playoff spot in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference in Oregon on Wednesday.
The winner will face No. 1-seed Los Angeles FC in a best-of-three first-round series, starting Sunday.
An unforeseen hurdle like a change of venues is nothing new for the ‘Caps, said defender Ranko Veselinovic, who was part of the team that was forced to relocate first to Portland, then Utah during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It feels that always something happens for us, but it is what it is. So far, we’ve managed to always find solutions for those situations,” said the Serbian centre back. “But I hope this team can find it one more time, because we need it this time. And it will be a really nice feeling in those circumstances to go in, win and go face L.A. in the next round.”
Vancouver (13-13-8) heads into the post-season winless in its last seven MLS games and with losses in four straight after dropping a 2-1 road decision to Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
The skid followed a run that saw the club go 4-1-3 across all competitions between late August and late September.
There’s just one way to return to that level, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini.
“The work is the only way to do it. Try to put the work in and try to put the team in a way that they’re going to regain the form and the way that they were in the past,” he said.
Despite the final score, Sartini has seen positives in the way his team played in its two most recent losses.
“I think already we turned the corner,” he said. “And we start from there to build and build and build.”
Facing challenges together can help a team build, whether it’s a winless skid or an unexpected hurdle, said Vancouver’s captain Ryan Gauld.
“When you’re going through adversity, that’s when people start to raise their voice a little bit. You get good when the problems arise, you get a lot of people coming together to make sure we get out of it,” said the Scottish attacking midfielder.
“And we’ve had a tough time the last few games, but everyone’s aware of the fact that we’re a much better team than we’ve shown, and we need to find a way to get back to doing what we’re good at.”
The ‘Caps face a familiar foe in the Timbers (12-11-11).
The two sides have already met three times this season, with each coming out of the series with a win, a loss and a draw.
Portland has also struggled in recent weeks and are winless in their last five MLS outings (0-1-4).
The Timbers boast one of the league’s top offensive units, though, with threats such as Evander. The Brazilian midfielder notched 15 goals and 19 assists during the regular season.
To earn a win on Wednesday, the Whitecaps must be solid defensively, Gauld said.
“They must be one of the best attacks in the league. They have a lot of good players, and they can hurt you if you switch off,” he said. “So just being concentrated from the first whistle, and just being hard to beat, being stuffy. Just being on it for the full 90 minutes.”
A victory in the wild-card match would guarantee Vancouver at least one home playoff game, a factor that Sartini said would be a big reward for his group.
The entire team relished the experience of playing post-season soccer in front of more than 30,000 fans last year, the coach said, and the desire to repeat the feat is high as the club heads to Portland.
“Everyone is happy to be in the playoffs. So we don’t have to be moody to be in the playoff. And we go in there, we’re play one of our rivals. So it’s gonna be a nice game to show up and to play our best game possible.”
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-13-8) AT PORTLAND TIMBERS (12-11-11)
Wednesday, Providence Park
HISTORY BOOKS: This will mark the seventh all-time post-season meeting between the Timbers and ‘Caps, dating back to 1975. The last time the two clubs squared off in a playoff game was during the Western Conference semifinal in 2015. Portland won the two-game aggregate series and went on to hoist the MLS Cup.
ROAD WARRIORS: The ‘Caps boasted a 7-6-4 record on the road during regular-season play — better than the 6-7-4 showing they posted at B.C. Place.
POST-SEASON PARTY: Wednesday will mark the first time the Timbers have hosted a post-season game since 2021.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Scotland conceived rugby sevens in the 1880s yet it will not feature in the scaled-back 2026 Commonwealth Games hosted by Glasgow.
Other sports that have also been dropped include field hockey, triathlon, badminton, Twenty20 cricket, squash, and diving.
The Games will have a 10-sport program in four venues. Athletics and swimming are compulsory while there will also be track cycling, gymnastics, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls and 3×3 basketball.
There will also be integrated para events in six of those sports: Athletics, swimming, track cycling, weightlifting, bowls and basketball.
The Games will take place from July 23-Aug. 2 after Glasgow stepped in when the Australian state of Victoria withdrew last year because of rising costs.
It was not easy to decide which sports to include, Commonwealth Games Scotland chairman Ian Reid told the BBC on Tuesday.
“I think everybody recognises that these events need to be more affordable, lighter and we would have loved to have all of our sports and all of our athletes competing but unfortunately it’s just not deliverable or affordable for this time frame,” Reid said.
Athletes and support staff will be housed in hotels. Around 3,000 athletes are expected to compete from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories representing a combined total of 2.5 billion people, a third of the world’s entire population.
More than 500,000 tickets made available for spectators.
The Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Katie Sadleir said: “The 2026 Games will be a bridge to the Commonwealth Games of tomorrow, an exciting first step in our journey to reset and redefine the Games as a truly collaborative, flexible and sustainable model for the future that minimises costs, reduces the environmental footprint, and enhances social impact. In doing so, increasing the scope of countries capable of hosting.”
Glasgow hosted the event in 2014 at a cost of more than 540 million pounds.
