Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. fields a ground ball in a drill during baseball spring training in Dunedin, Fla., on Friday, February 17, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
DUNEDIN, Fla. – Vladimir Guerrero Jr., provided one of the better lines of spring training last year when he proclaimed the Blue Jays’ 2021 season was the trailer and the 2022 campaign would be the movie.
It turned out to be a shorter film than he’d hoped. Toronto’s post-season run lasted the minimum two games.
There were no such proclamations on Friday when Guerrero held his first formal media availability of the spring.
“This year I’m not going to say anything,” he said with a smile via interpreter Hector Lebron. “You guys will have to watch.”
Guerrero, 23, posted strong offensive numbers again last season and his defensive play at first base was rewarded with his first career Gold Glove.
The young slugger hit 32 homers, drove in 97 runs and hit .274 in 2022 – a career season for many players. But coming off a second-place finish in the MVP race, it was a slight dip in production.
Guerrero admitted he put a lot of pressure on himself and was a little anxious at times in the batter’s box.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider said teams were “pretty consistent” in how they tried to attack him, including trying to get him to chase pitches outside the zone.
“Like any young player, there’s going to be an adjustment and then a readjustment based on what the league is doing,” he said. “So I think that’s the main part of it is just really swinging at the right pitches.”
Mental preparation and pitch selection will be key, Guerrero said.
“As a ballplayer, you want to get better every year,” he said. “You guys know the numbers that I put up in ’21. Last spring training, I came here and tried to (produce) even better numbers. I think that affected me a little bit.
“But this year, I’m coming with a plan. I’m just going to trust my talent and I’m just going to keep working hard and hopefully everything goes well.”
Schneider said it’s common for many hitters to see an ebb and flow with their swing mechanics over the course of a season.
“There were times where he was probably closing himself off a little bit and then opening up a little bit too early,” he said. “You couple that with where the pitches were actually being thrown, I think that’s what we saw.”
Guerrero will help anchor a batting order with plenty of pop. Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins also made some moves to shore up team defence and provide more left-handed bats.
The outfield has a new look with George Springer moving from centre to right field. Teoscar Hernandez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr., were shipped out and replaced by Kevin Kiermaier and Daulton Varsho.
“I think understanding that the way our lineup is going to be balanced out, it doesn’t always have to be him that’s getting the big hit,” Schneider said of Guerrero. “It could be him getting a guy over or it could be him drawing a walk.
“I think when he’s locked into that mindset, he gets really dangerous.”
The Blue Jays also added some arms to the bullpen in the off-season and Chris Bassitt was signed to shore up a rotation that lost Ross Stripling to free agency.
A solid young core – anchored by Guerrero, shortstop Bo Bichette and ace Alek Manoah – will be counted on to help Toronto take the next step after wild-card round exits in two of the last three years.
The Blue Jays’ Grapefruit League schedule kicks off Feb. 25 against Pittsburgh. The regular season kicks off March 30 at St. Louis.
The Seattle Mariners swept Toronto last fall, two years after the Blue Jays were swept by the Tampa Bay Rays in the wild-card series.
The Blue Jays’ last post-season victory came in 2016 when the club reached the American League Championship Series for the second straight year. Toronto last won the World Series in 1993.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2023.
Follow @GregoryStrongCP on Twitter.
