TORONTO — On the eve of the American League Division Series opener, Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider had a simple wish for his superstar, first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: Play free.
Guerrero had gone 89 plate appearances since his last home run. Eighty-three of those came after shortstop Bo Bichette, the cleanup hitter behind him, was lost to a left knee sprain. In the Jays’ final 20 regular-season games without Bichette, Guerrero batted .244 with a .558 OPS, looking not at all like a hitter who might carry his team in the postseason.
He was that hitter Saturday, with Bichette still sidelined, with the rival New York Yankees as the opponent, and with his previous three postseasons haunting him. The Jays draw strength from the way every player on their roster contributes.
“It’s insane,” outfielder Myles Straw said. “I’ve never been on a team where it’s someone different every time.”
But Guerrero, after signing a 14-year, $500 million extension, is the face of the franchise not just for the 2020s, but the 2030s as well.
“Whenever Vladdy’s going, the whole team’s going,” infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa said.
Guerrero, 26, was going in Game 1, lifting the Jays to a 10-1 victory that was a 2-1 game through six innings. His dominant performance included a homer in the first, a diving backhand grab to start an unassisted play in the second, a sacrifice fly on a 3-0 count to cap a four-run seventh and a single to make it a three-hit day in the eighth.
Guerrero’s two RBIs were one more than he had in his three previous postseasons combined, when he batted .136 and produced a most un-Vlad-like .422 OPS. For the second straight day, he denied taking special pleasure in torturing the Yankees. But at least some of his teammates notice a difference in Guerrero when the opponent is New York.
During the 2022-23 offseason, Guerrero made headlines when he told a Dominican outlet he would never play for the Yankees. He doubled down on that comment in ’23, saying it was a personal thing. But in ’24, as he approached what would have been his free-agent year, he softened his stance, saying he would be happy to play for any team. Now that Guerrero is signed through age 40, Jays fans need not worry about him leaving anytime soon.
Through Game 1, his career numbers against the Yankees — a .307 batting average, 23 homers in 391 at-bats and a .930 OPS — are indeed stunning. But Schneider said, “I think for Vlad it’s more so the postseason. When you think of his time in the big leagues in the postseason, it hasn’t been fun for him or anyone really.”
Saturday’s win ended the Jays’ seven-game postseason losing streak dating to 2016. Guerrero, in his postgame interview with me on Fox, noted it was his first playoff win. He then rattled off the years 2020, ’22 and ’23, the three times the Jays were swept in the wild-card round. Later, in the interview room, he mentioned that his father, Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero Sr., never won a World Series.
“That’s one of my goals, always has been one of my goals, to do that for me, for him,” Guerrero Jr. said.
Pitcher Max Scherzer, who joined the Jays this season, is an 18-year veteran and not easily impressed. However, what stands out to him while watching Guerrero is how his younger teammate is improving in every facet of the game, particularly in his mastery of the little things.
Guerrero’s acrobatic unassisted double play off a line drive by Ryan McMahon reflected his commitment to all aspects of his game — “If I’m not hitting, I’ve got to play defense, I’ve got to take care of my pitcher,” said the 2022 AL Gold Glove winner at first base. Combine that with a high baseball IQ and powerful arm, and you’ve got an impact defender.
Scherzer recalled a play by Guerrero that was perhaps even more stunning than Saturday’s, from a game Sept. 9 against the Houston Astros. With the score tied 3-3 and none out in the 10th, Guerrero fielded a grounder and immediately threw to third, where he nailed the automatic runner, Jose Altuve, by a good five feet. The Jays, on the day Bichette hit the injured list, went on to an emotional 4-3 victory.
“To me, that’s what makes him such a great player for our team,” Scherzer said. “For him being 26 years old, having that attention to detail, playing the game at a very high level, that’s infectious, that rubs off on guys. That makes guys want to be better at their craft.”
Yet for all that, Guerrero looked lost for much of September, his timing off, his swing not where it should be. Schneider said the five days off the Jays earned by winning a tiebreaker over the Yankees helped Guerrero, “sort some things out and kind of just feel where his swing should be a little bit.” Guerrero, who appeared in 156 games during the regular season, felt the benefit was more from rest than anything.
The Jays in recent years missed out on several big names in free agency — Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto and Roki Sasaki. But in signing Guerrero to his 14-year extension, they locked up a player born in Canada while his father starred for the Montreal Expos. And a player who, for all his accomplishments — five All-Star appearances, a Home Run Derby title, a Gold Glove — entered October missing one thing: Postseason success.
“Play free” was his manager’s request. Even under another October crucible. Even without his fellow star, Bichette. Guerrero, asked what he thought Schneider meant with those words, said, “To me, it’s play with my heart, give 100 percent every time.”
He played with his heart Saturday, putting an immediate and emphatic stamp on the game. Afterward, as Guerrero conducted interviews on the field, fans chanted, “Vlad-dy! Vlad-dy!” His parents are natives of the Dominican Republic, but Canadians claim him as their own. From Halifax to Vancouver, they had been waiting for this moment. And their hero did not disappoint.
(Photo: Mark Blinch / Getty Images)