Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. decision has ESPN insider giving himself an ‘F-‘ grade originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It’s easy to forget now, but Vladimir Guerrero Jr. didn’t have a contract for beyond 2025 when Opening Day arrived.

Only in early April did the Toronto Blue Jays and their superstar reach a $500 million pact.

So in the interim period there, analysts were wondering if Vladdy might be traded.

ESPN’s David Schoenfield, in his annual bold predictions column, wrote that Guerrero would end up with the Mariners or Brewers.

On Monday, Schoenfield revisited those predictions, and he wrote that his Blue Jays prognosis was the single worst on the list, assigning himself an F-minus grade.

“Well, this is about as wrong as you can get,” Schoenfield writes. “The Blue Jays, of course, signed Guerrero to that $500 million extension about a week after the season started. They also were not out of the race at the trade deadline, as I also predicted. My attorney offers up this defense: (1) These extensions NEVER happen after the season has started for a player one year away free agency; (2) George Springer? Ernie Clement? Nathan Lukes? Nobody saw those seasons coming; (3) The Mariners (Josh Naylor) and Brewers (Andrew Vaughn) both traded for first basemen. Apparently, the jury has rejected this defense.”

The Blue Jays got as close as can be. They were in extra innings of Game 7 of the World Series before losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But the Guerrero layer of this is all good news. Imagine if his contract was about to be up at the end of the postseason.

Instead, Toronto knows who the face of its franchise is for the next decade-plus.

There are other moves to be made this offseason, but Blue Jays fans are certainly glad this particular prediction wasn’t right.