Tag: Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hustling to first base, then hilariously chilling out in the Blue Jays’ bullpen was so relatable

“Out on the base path, the traffic starts jumping. With players like me on the job from 9-5,” — Vlad, probably.

The Blue Jays entered the 2022 season with almost impossibly high expectations. At 45-38 near the All-Star Break, Toronto is respectable but certainly not meeting any World Series aspirations.

Watch 2021 MVP runner-up Vladimir Guerrero Jr. operate these days, and it’s business as usual. Not in the sense that he doesn’t care, but more that things tend to have a way of correcting themselves in baseball. During the Blue Jays’ matchup against the Athletics (+1.5) on Wednesday afternoon, we saw the latest example of his chill attitude.

Guerrero Jr. hit a weak grounder at the top of the eighth inning. Playing to the end of the play, he hustled down the first base line. After the A’s finished the easy out, Guerrero Jr. wasted no time striding right off the field.

But not into the dugout. He went straight into the bullpen.

Absolutely hilarious. Who among us hasn’t finished a day’s work and took an immediate load off somewhere that wasn’t home?

Credit to Toronto’s relief pitchers for the sense of humor in letting Guerrero Jr. hang around freely. The Blue Jays would win the game 2-1, further validating “Vlad” being himself.

Breaking down the Shohei Ohtani vs. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. AL MVP race and who should win it

Can Vlad really win it?

It felt like a foregone conclusion a month or two ago that Shohei Ohtani would win American League MVP no matter what happened the rest of the season, or no matter how bad the Los Angeles Angels were.

But! Here comes Vladimir Guerrero Jr.!

The slugger for the Toronto Blue Jays might be on his way to finishing the season as a Triple Crown winner (!) if he keeps up a torrid September. Would that put him in front of Ohtani, especially if the Angels end up shutting down his pitching due to a sore arm?

Let’s break it down and see who really should win this thing:

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Juan Soto had a delightful mic’d-up conversation about their speed at first base

Never gets old.

It’s been said before — and I’ll say it again — but Major League Baseball needs to find a way to make mic’d-up player conversations be a part of every broadcast. It’s a great way to promote the personalities in today’s game, and honestly, it just makes for an entertaining viewing experience.

Just let Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Nationals slugger Juan Soto chopping it up at first base be the latest example of that.

MLB released the latest edition of its “Play Loud” YouTube series on Wednesday, which featured a genuinely funny conversation at first base between Soto and Vlad Jr.

Vlad Jr. was joking with Soto about his speed, and it turned into a relatable conversation about both of them being slow runners. It was so good. The exchange went something like this, according to MLB’s translation from Spanish to English.

Vlad: You only have three more stolen bases than me. I have three and you have six.

Soto: Tell me, where am I going? … Do you think I’m getting very far with these skates on my feet?

Vlad: You’ve always been a heavyweight just like me.

Soto: Yeah, you already know! I used to always hide during the 60-yard dash.

Vlad: Me too.

Love it. Though Soto was being a bit hard on himself there — he has MLB-average speed by most metrics.

But please, MLB, mic up the players for every game. It never gets old.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. gave Juan Soto a great mic’d-up pep talk before swing-off vs. Shohei Ohtani

This was fun.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. elected to not participate in this year’s Home Run Derby, which was a bit of a bummer because we all wanted to see him crush baseballs through Denver’s altitude (he saved that for the actual All-Star Game).

But that didn’t mean that he wasn’t heavily focused on Monday’s epic Home Run Derby.

The first round between the Nationals’ Juan Soto and Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani went into two tiebreaker rounds. The first tiebreaker was an extra minute while the second tiebreaker was limited to three swings.

There was a lot riding on those three swings, but before Soto went 3 for 3 in the swing-off, Guerrero seemed to be the one to offer some crucial advice to the 22-year-old.

In mic’d-up MLB video from the Home Run Derby, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Guerrero gave Soto a pep talk before that final swing-off. Guerrero said (translated to English):

“It’s three swings. Take your time. Boom. You hit it. Take your time, breathe and get back to it. Don’t just swing. Take your time.”

And then Tatis finished it off with “in slow motion!”

Hey, it was solid advice, and Soto took it to heart. He chose the exact three pitches he wanted to drive and put the pressure on Ohtani with the perfect tiebreaker round. Ohtani would get eliminated on his first swing.

But overall, that was an excellent look at the friendly atmosphere between the game’s biggest stars in Denver. You love to see that.

Of course, no participant could stop the Mets’ Pete Alonso and the real MVP … his BP pitcher Dave Jauss.

https://youtu.be/pgHz7vbqMWw

MLB All-Star MVP Guerrero gives special shout out to former Notre Dame star

What a gesture!

The conclusion of the MLB All-Star festivities last night saw the Toronto Blue Jays slugging first-baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a massive home-run, the 200th total in the All-Star game. The blast, along with an RBI groundout was enough for the Dominican native to be named MVP of the contest.

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During the middle of the game, there was a pause for the many people who have had the difficult battle with cancer. The segment saw everyone in the stands, including the All-Star’s holding up signs with a loved ones name on it, as they Stand Up To Cancer. In a heartfelt moment for many, the eventual MVP’s card was flashed on screen.

His card was dedicated to former Notre Dame star and All-Star teammate Trey Mancini. Guerrero Jr. wasn’t the only one either, as Baltimore teammate Cedric Mullins did the same.

Mullins dedication should come as a surprise, but for Guerrero Jr. to recognize Mancini is special. They aren’t teammates, aside from this game, and there’s a language barrier as well, with the MVP not being very comfortable with his English.

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That didn’t matter at all as the sentiment from Guerrero Jr. speaks much louder than the fact that they can’t fully communicate with each other. In a night full of stars, this was a very touching moment.

Vlad Guerrero Jr. predicted how he would score from first base on a double and it was so wild

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. really predicted exactly how he was was going to score

He’s only been in the majors for a few years now, but the legend of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is already growing.

This is only his third season in the big leagues but he’s already a legitimate MVP candidate. He leads the AL in hits with 104 and RBI’s with 73. This dude is a legitimate stud.

He also might be clairvoyant, apparently? At least, that’s what it seemed like when the Blue Jays played the Mariners.

Vlad Jr. made it to first base on a walk and was chatting it up on base with Mariners’ first baseman, Ty France. France joked that Vlad Jr. should try to steal the base.

He told him he didn’t have to. Why? Because his teammate, Randal Grichuk, was about to hit a double. And he was going to score from first.

That’s exactly what happened.

“France: Now you’ve got to steal second. Come on. You tell them not to pick off.

Guerrero Jr.: I can’t, bro. Now Grichuk is about to hit a double…I’ll probably score. Probably.”

This guy, man. What a legend. France put it perfectly.

“He just told me Grichuk’s going to hit a double and I’m going to score from first. That’s exactly what he just don’t me. A man of his word.” 

Seems to be that way.

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Yankees turn unorthodox triple play off bizarre Blue Jays’ baserunning lapse

Mental mistakes from the Blue Jays cost them here.

The New York Yankees are no stranger to triple plays this summer. Less than a month after getting out of a ninth inning jam with one, the Yankees have turned yet another triple play, this time off the back of a bone-headed Toronto Blue Jays mistake.

In the bottom of the first of Thursday’s game, with the Blue Jays threatening with runners on second and third, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a bouncing grounder to pitcher Michael King, securing the out at first. Then, the real fun begins as both Marcus Semien and Bo Bichette get caught in rundown after the former tries to back up to third, anticipating a throw home.

The result is a messy, but incredibly effective, triple play rundown for the Yankees thanks to some terrible baserunning decisions.

I also have to highlight Gio Urshela’s incredible turnaround throw back to third after tagging out Semien that was able to get Bichette to complete the triple play. Without that quick reaction to see Bichette attempting to get to third while everyone else was occupied, the Yankees likely wouldn’t have gotten that third out on the play.

Both Bichette and Semien were at fault for the original baserunning mishap that caused the second out in the sequence, but the former probably should have just tried to go back to second instead of forcing the play at third for that final out. Instead of threatening to put up runs early on the Yankees, the Blue Jays ended their first inning with a completely avoidable baserunning blunder.

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