Guerrero shows he's real deal

Jays star proving 2021 season was no fluke, setting up a massive payday

- GREGOR CHISHOLM

Blue Jays first baseman Spencer Horwitz can only watch the ball as the Red Sox's Ceddanne Rafaela reaches first on a throwing error.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s slow start has become little more than a distant memory. The four-time allstar is playing the best baseball of his career, and in doing so re-established himself as one of the sport’s biggest names.

Guerrero’s production since the all-star break has been sensational. He entered Tuesday night’s 6-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox ranked first in average and then picked up two more hits, including a double. He was also sitting first in total bases, second in on-base plus slugging and fifth in homers.

Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Bobby Witt Jr., Shohei Ohtani and Francisco Lindor. That’s the company the face of the Blue Jays is keeping these days with a mix of power, plate discipline and the ability to rack up hits.

“For me, that’s who I am, that’s who I am as a player,” Guerrero recently told the Star through interpreter Hector Lebron. “You always have to believe in yourself and I never lost that. I always believed in myself, always came to the field early, went about my routine with my coaches and worked hard. Thank God this year things clicked, but this is who I am.”