Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Yankees trade rumors: Blue Jays slugger open to playing in New York despite past comments

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has made it his mission over the years to make himself public enemy No. 1 among Yankees’ fans. He’s also not ruling out possibly joining New York if a trade made sense for both sides.

As the Yankees begin to look for a first baseman with Anthony Rizzo (forearm) out until August, Guerrero is answering the question on everyone’s mind: could the sport’s biggest young star at the position play for the team toward which he has expressed the most public disdain?

“Like I tell you, I’m a player and if a team picks me or if they do something, it’s because they need it, obviously, and I’ll be happy to help any team,” Guerrero told Virus Deportivo on Monday. “But right now, I’m just focused on helping my team try to get out of this bad streak.”

The odds the Blue Jays trade Guerrero at all, let alone to the leader in their division, would seem to be low, if not nonexistent. Here’s what you need to know about the possibility of a trade.

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Yankees trade rumorsThe reason Guerrero is fielding questions about what he would do if he was traded to the Yankees at all is because such a trade could make sense purely on paper. New York has a hole at first base with Rizzo hurt — and unproductive when healthy. The Blue Jays are last in the AL East at 35-43 and have Guerrero under contract for just one-and-a-half more seasons before he will command a massive new contract.

His name has been floated often in trade rumors, but the connection to the Yankees would seem to be the most farfetched given his on-field antics to stir up fans in New York and his past comments when he said he would not sign a contract with the Yankees, “not even dead.”

“Sometimes, one says things. It is not that I am trying to take back what I said about the Yankees,” Guerrero told Virus Deportivo. “But this is a business. I sat down and spoke with my dad [Vladimir Guerrero Sr.] and my family, and this is a business. And I said I would never again talk about this topic and lots of people have asked me about it.”

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It’s all likely to be a moot point. Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said in early June it “makes no sense” to trade Guerrero or star shortstop Bo Bichette, who is also in the final year of his rookie contract in 2025.

“Of course, we have dialogue with them, and that is something that will continue,” Atkins said of possible extensions for the pair. “We believe in them. We believe in their futures and hope that there is a way they can play here for a long time.”

The two players are considered franchise cornerstones who were both signed and developed by Toronto. Both blossomed into top prospects in the Blue Jays’ farm system, with Guerrero at one point ascending to the rank of consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball. His peak included finishing second in AL MVP voting in 2021 after posting a 1.002 OPS with 48 home runs, coming in behind only Shohei Ohtani’s dazzling two-way season.

Would Toronto want to risk watching Guerrero win a World Series with the Yankees? Of all the teams in baseball, they would certainly seem to be last on the list of destinations Toronto would want to trade him.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Yankees commentsGuerrero has said he likes playing in New York — just not the way Yankees fans would like.

Back in 2022, Guerrero talked about what it means to him to play against the Yankees.

“I like to play in New York. I like to kill the Yankees. I would never sign with the Yankees, not even [when I’m] dead,” Guerrero said, according to the New York Post.

He clarified in 2023 that there is a “personal thing that goes back with my family” as to why he would not play for the Yankees, per the New York Post, adding, “I would never change that.”

Guerrero has shushed Yankee fans in the past while rounding the bases on home runs, including as recently as April 2024, when he did it during a loss to the Yankees. He said it dates back to 2020 and that he does it regardless of the situation, according to the Associated Press.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. statsYearAgeGPAHRBB%K%AVG/OBP/SLG201920123514158.9%17.7%.272/.339/.4332020216024398.2%15.6%.262/.329/.4622021221616984812.3%15.8%.311/.401/.601202223160706328.2%16.4%.274/.339/.480202324156682269.8%14.7%.264/.345/.444202425783401011.2%16.5%.286/.368/.429Career 73831831409.9%16.1%.280/.356/.483