On Wednesday, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. launched three home runs — his second career three-HR game and first career four-hit game — in the Blue Jays’ 6-4 win over the Yankees.

At +380, Vlad Jr. is the early favorite to win AL MVP. Should he stay this hot and manage to win the award, his value will spike even more — putting pressure on Toronto to pony up for a massive long-term contract.

The longer Toronto waits, the harder it could become to commit the time or cash to him — especially if the terms are comparable to fellow 23-year-old superstar Fernando Tatis Jr. (14 YRS/$340M).

• Guerrero Jr. signed a one-year, $7.9M deal to avoid arbitration — making him the 163rd-highest-paid player in 2022.
• Last season, the Blue Jays handed out the largest contract in franchise history to George Springer (6 YRS, $150M), which is only 25th by total value and 16th by AAV ($29.7M).
• Complicating matters further for Toronto ($169.5M payroll, 11th in MLB) is teammate Bo Bichette — who’s playing on a pre-arbitration $723,550 salary and also in line for a payday.

After just 143 games, San Diego signed Tatis to the third-largest deal in MLB history, but the 14-year pact is just 27th in AAV ($24.3M) — an incredibly team-friendly deal if his production doesn’t fall off a cliff.

Guerrero still has three years of arbitration remaining and won’t be a free agent until 2026. The question is whether Toronto will lock him in before then.

Michael Jordan may have been the GOAT on the court, but his on-court success hasn’t translated to his ownership of the Charlotte Hornets.

With their 29-point loss to the Hawks in the play-in round, Charlotte has now missed six straight playoffs and failed to win a playoff series for 18 straight seasons — that’s tied with the Kings and Timberwolves for the longest active streak in the NBA.

The Hornets had its best season by win total (43) since 2015-16, but it still wasn’t enough.

• The Hornets have made the postseason only twice since Jordan bought the team in 2010.
• Since then, Charlotte has never finished higher than 15th in attendance (2021-22).
• The team relocated to New Orleans in 2002, then became the Charlotte Bobcats from 2004-2014, finishing in the lottery eight of those 10 seasons.

The 2016-17 campaign ($103M) was the only year in which Jordan’s teams were among the top 10 payrolls since 2010. They had the third-lowest 2021-22 payroll ($122M).

Jordan — whose net worth is $1.7 billion — has seen some return on his initial investment. 

He bought the Hornets in 2010 for around $180 million, and they’re currently valued at $1.57 billion — but that still makes them the fourth-lowest NBA team by value.

With young superstar LaMelo Ball leading the team for the foreseeable future, better days — and returns — could be ahead.

Clayton Kershaw hurled seven perfect innings on 80 pitches in his season debut on Wednesday  — before Dodgers manager Dave Roberts lifted him, costing him a chance at the 24th perfect game in history. 

The Dodgers are playing it safe after the 34-year-old missed more than two months of the 2021 season with inflammation in his left forearm and had a shortened spring training due to the lockout.

After his three-year, $93 million contract expired this offseason, Kershaw contemplated signing with his hometown Rangers before returning to L.A. with a uniquely structured contract — based largely on his health.

• In March, Kershaw signed for one year, $14.5M with a $2.5M signing bonus, plus the opportunity to earn millions with incentives.
• If he starts 16 games, he’d receive a $1M bonus with an additional $1M for reaching 20, 22, 24, and 26.
• A fourth NL Cy Young would bring another $1.5M ($500K for second or third).

A healthy Kershaw will give the Dodgers three aces in the rotation, along with Julio Urias and Walker Buehler, as they seek a second World Series title in three seasons.

Kershaw has the eighth-best odds (+1700) to win the Cy Young, while the Dodgers have the best odds (+475) to win it all.