Back to square '21: Vlad Jr.'s sights set on superstar form

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Don’t call it a comeback, he’s been here for years.

It’s not Spring Training until Vladimir Guerrero Jr. takes center stage and the opening bell officially sounds when he sets expectations high for the year ahead. The names and numbers change, but outside of his mammoth 2021 season, the theme remains the same.

Guerrero has constantly been searching for the right regimen, the right training, the right balance between tinkering and letting his incredible talents fly free. There have been lessons learned along the way -- some about baseball, others about trailers and movies -- but Guerrero understands that success starts with his body. His physical gifts alone make him a good Major League player, but marrying that to his 2021 approach is what could make him great again.

“In 2021, I prepared myself without thinking about all of those numbers that I could [put up],” Guerrero said through a club translator. “This year, I said, ‘You know what? I’m going to do the same thing.’ I’m not going to think about anything, mentally, about putting up numbers. I think it might work out. Maybe the same numbers, maybe better.”

This isn’t about curling 100 pounds or bench-pressing his Corvette. This is about holding up to the demands of a 162-game season, which can be a long learning curve for players through their early and mid-20s.

He’s battled wrist and knee injuries in recent years. Nothing debilitating, but these things add up. It’s not just baseball, it’s life on the road, the travel, the time changes, the late hours. How these players feel in September is a different life entirely than early February. Guerrero has acknowledged now that he didn’t prepare himself well enough for 2023 and felt that discomfort “from head to toe,” but it feels different now.

“To be honest with you? When I wake up,” Guerrero said, “I feel a lot better.”

Guerrero has played 161, 160 and 156 games over the past three seasons, rivaling Bo Bichette for the most reliable name in the lineup. His split between DH and first base reps could be more flexible now with Justin Turner in town and Cavan Biggio still capable of playing first, but Guerrero should still be out there with a glove on at least five games a week. Besides, he’s a plus defender now.

“He’s obviously in great shape physically,” manager John Schneider said. “This just allows him to be a little more durable and fresh every single day. He plays a ton. I think he really just took ownership of that this offseason. Showing up the way he did is exactly what we were hoping for.”

It’s time for conversations surrounding Guerrero’s fitness and health to end, though. The young man is a powerhouse, capable of hitting 40-plus home runs, winning batting titles and putting an entire lineup on his back. Being capable of something and actually doing it are two different things, though, and no player on this roster is as important to the Blue Jays’ success in 2024 as Guerrero.

When Vladdy goes, the Blue Jays go.

In the two seasons since Guerrero’s remarkable 2021, when all that could stop him from winning AL MVP was Shohei Ohtani, he’s hit .269 with an .804 OPS. His home run totals of 32 and 26 are nothing to roll your eyes at, but this is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. There’s so much more in there. With two years of team control remaining on a club that’s fighting to keep its competitive window open, it needs to happen now.

Guerrero needs help, of course. Toronto’s lineup struggled with situational hitting at times in 2023 and didn’t hit for as much power as it could have. While Guerrero needs to lead this charge, the lineup as a whole needs to get the Blue Jays over the hump they’ve struggled to find the other side of for four seasons.

“I think it improved,” Guerrero said. “We signed a couple of guys, veteran guys. When Spring Training starts, they adapt to the new team and to us. When you have guys like that, it’s a lot easier to work with them and to build that chemistry right away. The team improved in that way. I think the lineup is pretty good, too.”

In a perfect world, these annual spring storylines don’t exist. The Blue Jays would love to see Guerrero return to the mountaintop and stay there, year after year. Tuesday in Dunedin was step one -- again -- back in that direction.