Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr comments on loss to Yankees and division race going forward
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Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr doesn't seem to be too worried about the series loss to the New York Yankees.
Dropping two of three in the Bronx, capped by Sunday's 4-3 setback, was neither ideal, nor the end of the world, leaving them up two games with 19 contests to go.
In that way, their fate remains firmly in their own hands, although less comfortably than it could have been before a six-game homestand opens Tuesday with the first of three versus the Houston Astros.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr isn't worried about the Yankees but rather looking forward with his eyes on the prize
«I think we're good, I think we're good,» all-star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. said through interpreter Hector Lebron. «Obviously not what we wanted here, but you flush it, you rest (Monday) and then try to win the series against Houston.»
There's no time for wallowing with so little runway remaining, and the Blue Jays facing a difficult final three weeks with seven games versus the Tampa Bay Rays and three each with the Orioles, Red Sox and Royals after the Astros series.
In his first eight games back after suffering a left hamstring injury Aug. 18 at Pittsburgh and then not starting the next five outings, he went 3-for-28 with five RBIs, two walks and six strikeouts.
But since his ninth-inning single in Monday's 5-4 loss at Cincinnati, he's 13-for-21 with three doubles, two homers, five RBIs, eight runs and three walks against just one strikeout, which came in the came in the eighth inning Sunday against Devin Williams after Addison Barger had singled and stolen second.
Still, Guerrero's RBI double in the third inning tied the game 3-3 and left runners at second and third - a crucial opportunity the Blue Jays didn't cash in on, and he added another base hit in the fifth, as he was a threat every time up.
Highest career OPS at current Yankee Stadium (minimum 150 PA)...
Aaron Judge: 1.051
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: .991
Jose Bautista: .977
Juan Soto: .962
Aaron Judge: 1.051
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: .991
Jose Bautista: .977
Juan Soto: .962
Missing so many games in a row at the big-league level was «something new,» Guerrero said through interpreter Hector Lebron, as «obviously it was a pretty big injury.» Since returning, he's fought to regain his timing, which is being helped by «confidence more than anything. I've got to keep trusting myself, keep working for confidence.»
A healthier and locked-in Guerrero will go a long way to help the Blue Jays in September.
«If I told you that I'm 100 per cent in September, I'd be lying to you, but that's one of the things that I focus on in the off-season, to work very hard for the last month of the season,» he said. «And the more active I am at this point, the better I feel just trying to do anything that I'm capable of to help my team win.»
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