When Vladdy Is Rolling, Baseball Feels Bigger

Blue Jays star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put on a display of athletic dominance for the ages through the 2025 playoffs and World Series. The 51 million viewers worldwide who tuned in to the awe-inspiring, edge-of-your-seat action during game seven spanned the globe. Of course, Japan followed closely as their TWP superstar Shohei Ohtani took the mound to start the game. The US viewership was also deeply interested and invested in the outcome, as was 45% of Canada.

Vladdy, at that moment, was the country’s prodigal son, the comic book hero, born in Montreal, whose Hall of Fame father, Vlad Sr., left his own permanent imprint with the Expos, and with the annals of baseball folklore in Canada. Sr.’s eight years of dominance in La Belle Province remain among the strongest tenures of offensive prowess with one club, in MLB history. His path to Cooperstown continued in the American League for another eight years after leaving Montreal via free agency.

Vladdy Expected To Follow In Sr's Footsteps

​For Vlad Jr., expectations have always been enormous. Signed at age 16 out of the Dominican  Republic as an International Amateur Free Agent (IFA), the Blue Jays were quick to add a kid with star power and Hall of Fame pedigree.

He has shown flashes of otherworldly brilliance on both sides of the field. Initially projected as a third baseman, Vlad Jr. has seamlessly made the adjustment to first base, winning the American League Gold Glove in 2022 and becoming a finalist virtually every other season.

Strangely, his offensive output is slightly lopsided and reads like a blue-chip stock following an IPO. Steady after launch, and then a catapult to numbers, in his age 22 season of 2021, that even the most optimistic of fans could not have rightfully foreseen. A torrid season of 48 home runs, right at the time when Toronto was experiencing a time of transition, and loss of its perennial power threats of Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion, who had supplied All-Star power numbers through the bulk of the 2010’s

The Relentless 162

​Toronto, it appeared, had its next generational superstar. Then Vladdy was good, pretty good, and good again. The ripple effect of his incredible 2021 campaign offered a taste that became lasting. A home run derby crown sprinkled in with another Silver Slugger helped to secure more All-Star appearances. Those accolades almost seemed like a token of favoritism at times.

The fans love Vladdy. He exemplifies what is pure, altruistic, and flat-out fun in baseball. But the reality is, overall, he did not quite live up to the demands and expectations that the fanbase had placed on him. That is, until the 2025 playoffs and World Series.

​After signing a jaw-dropping 14-year, 500 million contract, effectively making Vlad a Blue Jay until his age-40 season, he finally showed the world, on the grandest of stages, that he is one of the best. In fact, his eight home runs, .337 batting average, and 1.091 career OPS.OPS through just shy of 100 playoff at-bats have proven that he is a big-time playoff performer.

​What about now, though? As in 2026? Just last night, with two on in the ninth, against the same New York Yankees that Vlad tormented and almost single-handedly dismantled with home run after home run, he, uh, grounded out weakly. Jays fans who may have been tuning in probably saw this as a pivotal moment.

The stage was set for an epic three-run bomb to silence the Yankee Stadium crowd, and have lights-out closer Louis Varland shut the door for victory in the bottom of the ninth. But that wasn’t to be. And so far in 2026, with Vladdy, this has been the case. Where is our clutch superstar? Can Vlad still make a rightful claim as the perennial pick, as All-Star voting is about to roll out phase one?

That Thing

​It seems like he should be. After all, wasn’t everyone expecting him to piggyback from the momentum that he carried through last season’s playoff run, despite the gut-wrenching, almost unbelievable defeat at the hands of the Dodgers, that nobody has fully processed yet? In Toronto, anyway, the loss remains like the haze of Covid-19, the pandemic, that “thing” that happened that goes without further discourse.

​Vlad is 27, the time when MLB stars are supposed to hit their prime, and the peak of their potential.

​Across MLB, though, it is the wave of young talent that seems to be taking over. The fat contracts that have been handed to the A-Listers like Ohtani, Vlad, and Juan Soto are second-hand news when compared with the “Pay Your Respects Early Era”. That is, (slightly) less money, but investing in highly touted prospects such as shortstops Konnor Griffin (Pittsburgh) and Kevin McGonigle (Detroit), both of whom are already showing huge return on the club's investment (ROI).

Konnor Griffin: Data Streak Player Card

Ben Rice & The Big Amish

Ben Rice and the New York Yankees are off to a strong start in 2026.

​At Vlad’s position, there is an equally impressive influx of what appears to be “generational” talent that, for the time being, might even convince Canadian voters that this year, Vlad should sit out the mid-summer classic. The “Big Amish”, Nick Kurtz of the nomadic (Sacramento) Athletics, has a career stat line so far, at age 23 and after what is essentially one full season, that is well worthy of MVP consideration.

The same can be said for the Yankees' newly-named starting first baseman, Ben Rice. The 27-year-old Ivy League product out of Dartmouth has exceeded what all critics had thought possible of him and has emerged as the best offensive first baseman in the game this season. Leading MLB with a 1.062 OPS, 15 home runs, and 31 RBI through 43 games are numbers normally reserved for three-time AL MVP Aaron Judge, but Rice is proving to be a similar threat from the left side.

Final Thoughts on Vladdy's Resurgence

​So what about our guy? When will he snap out of this funk and put the critics to rest? As mentioned, the game needs its stars, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., despite showing elements of humility in recent interviews and sound bites, is unquestionably one of MLB’s most recognizable stars. For the Jays to move into a position where any thought of a playoff berth is realized, they need Vladdy to produce.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. looks to find his power stroke v. the Yankees

There is a world of pressure and expectations that lies on his 27-year-old shoulders. But he has to start raking and finding the seats, as he did not long ago. Whether it’s an adjustment in launch angle at contact or an intensified program of guided visualization and cognitive-behavioral therapy. The game needs some Vladdy highlights. Time to deliver!