By now it’s pretty common knowledge that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. seems destined to start the 2019 season in Buffalo playing in Triple-A. He’s already proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that he’s ready to hit at the highest level last year, but that’s not what his delay is about.
You’ll likely hear a few different “reasons” for why he’ll start the year in Triple-A, but in reality there is only one: so the Blue Jays can gain an additional year of contract control. MLB players have a running total on their major league service time (read more here), and by delaying Guerrero’s MLB start they can control his contract for seven years instead of six.