Prized Blue Jays prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has suffered a Grade 1 left oblique strain, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet reports. The team estimates Guerrero will need three weeks to recover, Davidi adds.
The injury to Guerrero officially takes him out of the running to open the season in Toronto, though he wouldn’t have stood much chance to crack its roster even if he remained healthy. Not only will the Blue Jays gain an extra season of control over Guerrero by keeping the 19-year-old in the minors until mid-April, but general manager Ross Atkins indicated last month that the big-bodied third baseman’s not yet suited for a major league promotion. Since then, Guerrero has batted a meager .211/.250/.316 in 19 spring at-bats.
Despite his struggles over a small sample of exhibition plate appearances, Guerrero’s an all-world hitter who’s widely regarded as the game’s best prospect. As such, few took Atkins’ comments at face value, instead believing Toronto would demote him to manipulate the player’s service time. It’s now a moot point in light of the injury, though, as Davidi notes Guerrero would have been ticketed for a season-opening rehab assignment anyway. The hope now is that the injury won’t linger beyond the team’s estimated timeline, as is often the case with oblique issues.
Regardless of whether Guerrero’s back within the three-week window, he’ll see more time at Triple-A Buffalo before earning his first call-up to the majors this season. Guerrero garnered his first Triple-A experience late last year and slashed a phenomenal .336/.414/.564 (175 wRC+) with six home runs and more walks (15) than strikeouts (10) over 128 PAs, further cementing himself as an elite young player.
OH HOW CONVENIENT
LOL
also important to note he was batting .221 so far in ST.
Worse. 211/.250./316. .566 OPS with poor defence. But this is a ‘conspiracy’. It’s amazing how easily people talk themselves into stupidity.
So you’d rather look at 19 ST ABs vs. his 357 ABs last year in AA/AAA of .381/.437/.636. What would going back to AAA do for him?
Agree with it not being a conspiracy, but it’s tough when you post of others talking themselves into stupidity, but you spell defense with a c. Unless you’re British, then we’re cool.
Improve his defense and actually become an athlete look how fat he is!
This might shock you, but a lot of Canadians probably post on the Jays-related stories.
Zing!
Dangerous thing about small sample sizes – if he had gotten two more hits, he’d be hitting .315…
If your aunt had 2 more balls , she’d be your uncle.
Lol
Mr. T-Rex has a point, but you still made me lol
Bingo! Too funny …
BURN!!!
This is what happens when the simpleton fans think they know something and get behind a stupid narrative. If a team says a guy isn’t ready he’s not ready and these things happen. But of course nobody is allowed to to hold people accountable. Anyone that said he should have made the team out of spring training should have been banned from the site until they bring back the dislike button on the site.
I know great timing.
Right?
Blue Jays Management: YESSSS!!!!!
Not gonna lie – I absolutely had that thought for about a second, before common sense took over.
Not surprised. Speedy recovery.
Hype hype hype, however deserved, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves with it. A reminder of just how iffy even the most touted prospects can be.
Strained obliques can happen to anyone. However, coming into camp out of shape probably contributed. The leaders, mentors and upper management also need to remind him of how important it is to be prepared.
Remember when Kevin Pillar strained his oblique from sneezing? And then a month later, he made one of the most spectacular catches in the history of baseball?
So yeah, has nothing to do with being “out of shape”. Read up on oblique injuries…. it’s a very common injury among in-shape athletes.
Cool, but this one isn’t in shape
But physical conditioning does contribute. Specifically towards recovery. 3 weeks may be optimistic.
Are you a doctor?
Did you miss my very first line? Answer: Yes.
“Strained obliques can happen to anyone.” I cannot have been more clear.
Vlad not coming into camp in-shape is a much bigger problem nobody wants to discuss. But try not to take what I typed out of context.
Wait….too late….
No, but he played one on TV
And three more weeks to work on his defense.
Or his diet? Dude’s built like Nicki Minaj.
That is true. He is a fat tub of lard this year.
well, theres validation to keeping him down
I’m actually ready to see a lot of these blue jay prospects. I think unlike some other farm systems, these players are in a good position and will make a big impact for them. So long as they can learn from failure in their early seasons, they are going up against some of the best in baseball (yanks, Sox) then of course the Rays building something good also. Getting that experience early on, then having all click as they mature can be scary
DOY
He needs to lose some weight to play 3B and stay healthy. Still a big fan of his
I agree. Isn’t it crazy how some of these guys have all the talent in the world but you wonder how when they clearly have a body that suggest they don’t work hard at all. He must be on that OL workout/diet program.
Stick him on first and let him mash.
Or he could DH.
Jays opted to keep Morales and Smoak to prevent the 1b/DH idea. It should have happened. Morales’ leadership didn’t prevent Vlad from visiting Fudruckers.
Well their talent has easily carried them—and then something more is required.
Yeah, if only the Blue Jays played in the American League and had some kind of position in which a batter could just bat and not worry about defense. Or if only there was an easier position on the diamond than third base, like, I dunno, first base or something. But oh well. The Jays do have perennial superstar…searching…Justin Smoak at first.
Vlad Guerrero Jr, in AAA as a 19-year-old in 2018:
.336/.414/564
Three weeks pretty much puts him in line to make his debut just after the super-two cutoff. That seems very convenient.
The dream is dead.
Atkins probably wants Vlad Jr to join the Atkins diet, that or Keto. A “big bodied” guy straining an oblique, seems like more of a conditioning issue than a random injury. Vladdy has those good baseball genes, time to cut out the carbs, Vlad.
We’d love to see him in the show but not if he can’t stay healthy, no team wants to promote a guy only to have him acure service time in the DL due to their conditioning.
Overrated
The greatest minor league hitter of all time is overrated? Ummm ok
Ever?
I wish the media would calm down with stating things like “Guerrero’s an all-world hitter” until/if that happens at the highest level. Sure things are never sure things until they prove it.
He hit over .400 in AA over .320
In AAA and in the fall league.. not over rated
Not that hard to play good in the minors..
since you did so well
So easy that no one else is doing it.
tim tebow says hello
As a 19-year old. His numbers, at his age, are otherworldly.
So true. Remember when Michael Jordan was destroying the ball in AA?
Oh, wait.
It is when you’re a teenager
Maybe but he’s the best hitter to come through the minors since… ever? He’s outhit nearly every superstar or hall of famer throughout the same ages and timeframes. How that translates to the big leagues is worth questioning though. We’ve seen countless middle of the order bats and top of the rotation arms fizzle out into nothing.
Everyone is either drinking heavily or pouring out the Vlad Jr Kool-aid! If he’s doing this well I’m minors, it’s not against HoF pitching, possibly future HoF prospects. When he gets to majors, he’ll have 1-2 decent seasons vs actual HoF pitching. Only way he can sustain is if he can out hit them after they realize how to pitch to or around him.
Great pitchers aren’t intimidated by great hitters! You don’t see Scherzer, Kluber, Kershaw and Degrom pitching out against the Machados and Harpers…they go after em and make em work for every swing!
If Vlady is as good as advertised, he’ll need to consistently connect against seasoned MLB pitching at the highest level from the start! Again, everyone will see him at least once or twice in the next 1-2 seasons, but great ones will know how to get him out unless he makes his own adjustments over time!
Oh and I’m not Canadian, but I’ve been a lifelong Jays fan for 36-years! But unlike others around here, I actually follow baseball…and I know there’s no such thing as a sure thing in any sport! You’re measured by your career, not by a few great seasons!
But truth be told, I’m very much drinking that koolaid, LOL!
These thing really DO work themselves out.
Yoan ripped aaa/aa too didn’t he? How’s he faring right now? Let’s hold the hype train! I think vlad jr. Will be better than yoan but he needs to definitely work on that big ol’ body to get through a whole season. Plus he’s young with bad habits I’m sure. So looks like a blessing in disguise for jays
Big difference between Vlad Jr. and Yoan is hit tool. I believe a big indicator on whether a young player will succeed is K rate in the minors. Vlad Jr. simply doesn’t strike out much at all he walked more then he struck out as a 19 year old in AAA. This is why he such a highly rated offensive prospect. Yoan, on the other hand, has all the skills he can be a true five tool player but he has a problem with the K. He will need to get that under control in order to hit his ceiling. Yoan had that issue in the minors as well that same issue is not there for Vlad Jr.
Hehehe. He’s not fat, he’s big boned. Too bad he didn’t inherit his father’s body type.
“big bodied”
Dude’s got a huge booty. His body reminds me Nicki Minaj, which seems less than ideal for a MLB superstar. I’m joking but I’m not. They’re built identical. Lol
Now they have an excuse to leave him down in the minors till June.
Well now he’s got three things in common with Edwin Encarnacion:
– Dominican beefy boy
– Oblique strain during spring training
– Can’t play third base
As I recall it took Edwin a few seasons of being a “can’t miss” prospect who nevertheless was missing until he got himself in better shape physically and maybe mentally. I don’t necessarily think it will take Vlad Jr. a few seasons, but maybe this demotion will help serve as a similar wake up call.
I’m not here bashing Vlad but people have to remember that hyped player have failed for as long as hype has been around?
Ever hear of Clint Hartung? He was touted as the next Babe Ruth in the 40’s. He could pitch and hit. One writer said something like “skip the Polo Grounds, send him straight to Cooperstown”, when the Giants signed him.
baseball-reference.com/players/h/hartucl01.shtml
You are joking about Hartung, right? He was drafted immediately into the military after being drafted into baseball. It took him five years before he finally saw the majors, after fighting in WW2. And the Giants decided to let him pitch and hit rather than focus on one or the other, and he was completely unable to do both. He’s not any kind of parallel for Vlad Jr., who is 20, hasn’t spent 5 years in a war, and only plays one position (and doesn’t have to play a position at all anyway).
No I am not joking about the HYPE, David. Try and pay attention once in a while instead of always being in attack mode….geesh.
BTW he did minors before the service and hit .358 with a 3.60. “He spent the duration of World War II playing for Army Air Forces baseball teams, including the Hickam Field Bombers in Hawaii, for whom he won 25 consecutive decisions as a pitcher and hit .567.”
nytimes.com/2010/07/22/sports/baseball/22hartung.h…
One of the gods of analytics, Bill James, named an award for the biggest bust of the decade after him. baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=hartucl0…
Once again I was pointing out that hype has existed for decades and that some players don’t live up. Now, I have things to do that don’t involve snide remarks from narcissists. Have a nice day.
Well said Cat. Thanks for the read also.
Narcissist. Nice. I don’t recall calling you names, but to each his own. Anyway, the point is that anybody’s skills as a baseball player decline if they haven’t played real competition in 5 years (his little stats against a bunch of other soldiers are cute but not quite relevant). And no player has been able to successfully hit and pitch at the same time in a season except, of course, for Ohtani in 2018, and even then he only threw 50 innings. Trying to make him a two-way player after five years of basically not playing wrecked Hartung’s career. Vlad isn’t going to have any of those kinds of issues. I have a hard time finding anybody who destroyed AAA pitching the way Guerrero Jr. did as a 19-year-old, because there have been so few 19-year-olds who have even played in AAA except for superstars.
davidcoonce74……….
“Narcissist. Nice. I don’t recall calling you names”
No you just like to tell people how stupid they are if they disagree with you. It’s usually veiled, albeit thinly, If the shoe fits…………
Once again genius I was comparing hype, not players.
Did you not even read the story? He played during the war… so how exactly did he not really play for 5 years… when he played the entire time…
Show me where I called anyone “stupid” ever. I was pointing out an historic anomaly that should probably not be any sort of comparison to anything. Hartung was an outlier in every sense of the word.
Once again your ego will not allow you to comprehend….”It’s usually veiled, albeit thinly”. You constantly attempt to belittle anyone who does not kneel before your self perceived superior intellect. If anyone mentions a stat you deem unworthy you are one of the first to jump them….. always.
See if you can wrap your head around this one last time……I was comparing the hype…NOT THE PLAYER….get it? I know you won’t because you don’t want to…that is your M.O.
Have a nice day, I am done conversing with you…if you respond to one of my posts it will be ignored as you are too intentionally obtuse to engage.
That is the weirdest comparison. He mostly pitched while in the big leagues and none of us ever saw him play.
Oxford Karma
Please show me where I made a comparison between the two players. I never did. I simply stated that hype is nothing new and has been around for decades.
The closest thing to a comparison would be Conner’s statement that “Guerrero’s an all-world hitter” and Sportswriter Tom Meany saying of Hartung, “Rather than stop at the Polo Grounds they should have taken him straight to Cooperstown.”
Possibly a better comparison than Hartung, then, who had so much off-field issues that he was never going to be good, would have been someone like Brandon Wood, who decimated A ball, and was widely viewed as one of the best hitting prospects in baseball. But even then, Wood was 20 years old in high-A. I don’t think Hartung, with his very odd career path, is a comparison to anyone.
Starbucks can you lay off the caffeine for a second? Cat made a comparison over hype and you want to nitpick like a petulant child in a toy section after mommy said no. Off-field issues? Yeah, I guess WW2 is would be an “issue” in your books. Hurtang was a two-way player while Vlad is a two-way player between hitting and the buffet.
The shoe fits, as Cat mentioned.
Want a better comparison?
Player A: 8 hrs, 15 sbs, 33 bbs, 35 ks, .271/.359/.449 triple slash in rookie ball at 17
Player B 11 hrs, 4 sbs, 27 bbs, 19 ks, .351/.418/.587 triple slash in rookie ball also at 17
If hype weren’t what is fueling Vlad right now, why isn’t Wander Franco considered the better hitting prospect? He crushed Vlads stats since he was player B
If Player B keeps those statistics into the high minors then everyone will be talking about player B. The point for Vlad is he has hit all the way up the ladder in the minors including AAA as a 19 year old. If Wander continues what he did in rookie ball as he goes up the minors then I’m sure we will be hearing about him very soon.
Player B, Wander Franco is MLB’s number 13 prospect after only rookie ball so pretty sure he is already getting his due.
Yeah Cat, that comparison is a major major stretch. The war time thing blows the comparison completely up. Plus it being 70 yrs ago also makes it tough to compare.
Where did I compare them? I simply stated that hype has been around for decades and sometimes players do not pan out. I never said Vlad won’t like Hartung. I never compared the two and I am not comparing them now. I made a simple statement of fact, nothing more, nothing less.
BTW I noticed I had a wrong link to the Clint Hartung Award List by Bill James
baseball-almanac.com/awards/clint_hartung_award.sh…
Ok, sure they’ve both been hyped. But the hype not working out with the WW2 guy has no relevance to Vlad Jr’s situation. That’s the disconnect. Everything that went wrong with him not being successful because of the War and weird position situation when he got back from War time isn’t relevant to Vlad Jr. But sure they were both hyped guys, that’s obviously the extent of anything.
The only connection i was making is the type of hype “Guerrero’s an all-world hitter” and “The next Babe Ruth”.
You do realize that during the war Hartung played baseball for the Army Air Corp, right? That was his job.
Wouldd people have been happier if I had said Drew Henson? Maybe Josh Vitters? Danny Goodwin? I choose Hartung because of the type of hype stated above. That’s it…plain and simple.
It has nothing to do with the players per se and all has to do with the vernacular.
Good god guys, Cat was simply stating that good players have been hyped for decades and many, if not most, turn out far worse than their hype! He was not comparing apples here. He was saying people have been hyping for decades! Y’all should stop with the hype…just wait and see!
Vitters, Goodwin, Henson – those guys never were nearly as well-considered as Guerrero Jr. Vitters topped out as the #31 prospect in baseball, once. Henson topped out at #9, Danny Goodwin was sent to the majors directly after being drafted, which destroyed his development. None of these guys’s “hype”,” whatever that was, matched their results, even in the mi nors. Guerrero is “hyped” but he has backed it up by performing at a nearly unheard-of level as a 19-year-old.
rocknwell…..
Thanks for understanding what I believed to be a simple concept.
davidcoonce74
“Vitters, Goodwin, Henson – those guys never were nearly as well-considered as Guerrero Jr.”
Really…wow, I never knew. /s
Now you are being intentionally obtuse. Let me explain one more time.
I was comparing the hype…not the players, something you cannot seem to grasp. I didn’t use Vitters, Goodwin, Henson – those guys never were nearly as well-hyped as Guerrero Jr. I chose closest level of hype I could think of. I didn’t compare the players, you did. I compared the hype, a concept you can’t or won’t grasp. Most likely it’s the latter
“an all-world hitter” and “The next Babe Ruth”…..it was never a comparison of players util you made it one and continued to do so even after it was explained to you.
Alright, Buxton was the top prospect in baseball two years in a row, was considered a can’t miss prospect… missed.
Look up the top prospect by year every year and laugh at how many are currently AAAA players. Guys get hyped all the damn time and fall on their face. The success rate of prospects is astronomically low.
“Danny Goodwin was sent to the majors directly after being drafted”
You just destroyed your own argument, Starbucks.
Yup top prospects can fail but if you look deeper at the numbers you can see the potential warts on most of those stop prospects.
The common denominator is high K rates in the minors. It stands to reason that major league pitchers will take advantage of this and not all guys make the adjustment.
This is not the case with Vlad he has a very low K rate especially for someone with elite power potential. I think it is highly unlikely he busts.
I’m sure it has happened but in the last 20 years who has busted with his elite minor league hitting coupled with low K rates and high walk rates. I can’t think of anyone.
“200 pounds” sure
He’s 250 as of now
Everyone knows guys like him, Jimenez, Alonso were going to start the season in AAA… no surprises anywhere.
Funny how people think a high BA in the minors means you can hit the Majors nobody looks at the pitchers these prospects are getting these hits off of most of those pitchers are scrub organizational depth
Something smells fishy here. He needs 3 weeks for the oblique strain to heal? The same amount of time he needs to be down in the minors for them to have him an extra year.
Might be time for some remedial math there, bud…. Opening Day is still 2.5 weeks away.
Did you think the tinfoil hat crew would be good at math?
I like everyone refers to tinfoil hats but are you even old enough to have ever seen tin foil?
Are Yogi and Warren the same guy?
Id wager that doing this intentionally would be criminal. And why? So they can avoid difficult questions about a decision that is easy to justify and even in the worst case only conforms to what other organizations are doing?
Junior needs to get off that lucky gravy diet.
Blue Jays front office has never been happier about an injury. It makes their decision for them and isn’t anything to worry about, regarding long term health.
Another stupid comment. As though the Front Office wants to see a player hurt because they give a hoot what some clowns on the internet think, Pretty sure that what the Front Office thinks from top to bottom is that they’ve never seen such stupidity as is rampant in Toronto.
Cmon Eddie. I’m going to assume this is one of the least serious oblique “injuries” possible. They need an excuse to send him down.
It’s the same injury Edwin Encarnacion had three years ago. It happens.
Not everything is a conspiracy.
Eddie may have a point. An injury last year, another injury now. 3 weeks is significant enough. Probably more on the horizon. Front Office ought to have concern over the #1 prospect and whether or not he can be durable.
Can someone in the jays organization tell this kid to stop EATING! Such a great talent!
how about mentally, is the kid doing ok? I mean is anyone in his corner giving him some positive encouragement? you know he wants to be in the show. Son of a HOF. alot to live up to being one highly touted prospect. just hoping he has his head wired tired and some ppl in his corner giving him confidence and tossing out the shade
head wired tight…
Watch people call him a lazy player because of his weight. But as I’ve said before only Latinos are called lazy when it comes to baseball …
David Wells approves this message.
He is 0.1% Latino … I think
Well he gained 50 lbs in season last year and now is larger than Miggy or David Ortiz lmao.
Sucks to be the sucker who took him in the third round of a fantasy draft. classic.
So when he gets healthy in mid April after the service time milestone, I wonder how many games he’ll need to play to improve his defense?
Early June for the Super Two cutoff probably.
As many as it takes. Jays won’t be competitive this year anyway.
Now they’ll try to drag him back to the Super two date in early June. #idioticCBAagreedtobyplayers #theirownfault
#bushleaguecomment
It may be bush league but true regardless.
#bushleagueforliterallylife
It’s hilarious how many haters immediately jump to the “controversy” angle on a guy getting hurt with a very common baseball related injury. Of COURSE the Jays are making this all up to get that extra year of control! And Vlad is in on it too!! And…the union loves it even more!!! Give it a rest. The only thing us Jays fans care about is this getting treated and over with and getting Vlad back on the field. That’s the franchise prospect right there.
Not only is Vlad in on it, reporting an injury he never had, but also the doctor is in on it too, about to give up his medical license to diagnose a non-existing injury. And all this was apparently to try to trick the Toronto Service Time Bandwagon. Can’t fool them though, they figured out the conspiracy right away! LOL! Embarrassing.
Wonder if the MLBPA has inquired about an independent review? 🙂
Player always has the option to you know, say they aren’t injured if it’s untrue. You thinking the Dr is trying to lose their license for documenting a fake injury?
“Big bodied third baseman”, is an understatement. I’d be strained if I was a ligament in that overweight puss.
But instead of being a ligament in an “overweight puss”, youre a loser named rodster typing his criticism of a #1 prospect. Why dont you write him up a meal plan, superstar?
Hopefully the Blue Jays strength and conditioning coach did that mid-February or sometime after Vlab stumbled and bumbled around Third Base.
FatReaper: Switch to the Yankees, it will be easier on your psyche and futile endorsement of Flab boy.
Knobster – Thanks, but no thanks. Wouldn’t want to be call a frontrunner fan.