Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (24-Toronto Blue Jays), who two years ago was in contention with Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles Angels) for the American League (AL)바카라사이트 home run title and MVP, has regressed in his second year. And his manager has had enough.
Guerrero started at third base and went 0-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout against the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado. Offensively, Guerrero poured cold water on the Jays, who fell to 7-8.
He singled with runners on first and second in the first inning. He pushed a five-pitch changeup from Colorado left-hander Ty Blach to second base for a 4-6-3 double play. He drew a walk in the second inning, but another walk was followed by a double in the fourth. With the bases loaded and one out, he pulled a low changeup outside the zone but grounded out to shortstop. The 6-4-3 double play ended the inning and the game for Toronto.
In the fourth inning, the defense was just as bad. Ernie Clement’s grounder to shortstop by Sean Borchardt was missed by Guerrero at first base. The throw went into first base, but it wasn’t tricky enough to catch. The score was a throwing error by Clement, but it was more like a throwing error by Guerrero. Shaking his head in frustration, starter Yusei Kikuchi gave up two more runs.
After Guerrero struck out swinging with one out in the seventh, he was caught stealing third base with nobody out in the ninth. The pitch was short and did not turn into a sacrifice fly. He blew three scoring chances and put his head down.
Toronto blew a 5-0 lead through two innings. They rallied for two runs in the ninth, but lost to Colorado 7-8. It was a game that could have been won with one more save from Guerrero. At 74-62, Toronto, the fourth AL wild card, was content to maintain a 1.5-game lead over the third-place Texas Rangers (75-60).
[Photo] Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays ⓒGettyimages (All rights reserved)
[Photo] Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays. ⓒGettyimages (All rights reserved)
According to the Associated Press, Toronto manager John Schneider commented after the game, “I think Guerrero is trying to hit something big with a couple of guys missing from the lineup, so it’s important to swing at good pitches.” The Jays are missing key hitters like Bo Bissett, Matt Chapman, and Danny Jansen to injury. While he understands Guerrero’s desire to get it done, the manager had some words for him when the results weren’t going his way.
The son of Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, who hit 449 home runs in his major league career, Guerrero broke into the majors in 2019 as a highly touted prospect. In 2021, his third year, he fulfilled his potential, hitting .401 with 48 homers, 111 RBIs, a .601 on-base percentage and a 1.002 OPS in 161 games. He lost the MVP award to Ohtani, but led the AL in home runs, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, and OPS.
However, after hitting .818 with 32 homers and 97 RBIs in 160 games last year, he has regressed to a mediocre .769 with 20 homers and 80 RBIs in 132 games this year. His second-year regression has led to extension talks with Toronto. /waw@osen.co.kr
[Photo] Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays and Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels. ⓒGettyimages (All rights reserved)