Vladimir Guerrero Jr. laughed off the boos Thursday, and Kevin Pillar didn't let it slide.
The Blue Jays fell 13-2 to the Royals, and Guerrero went 0-for-3 with a walk in another hitless night.
After a groundout in the bottom of the sixth, the crowd let him hear it. On the broadcast, Guerrero appeared to laugh as he jogged off the field.
That reaction didn't sit well with the fans, and it didn't sit well with a former Blue Jay watching from the booth either.
"I get that Vlad Guerrero Jr. is a lovable guy and the face of the franchise, but this fan base has expectations, and he has not met those expectations," Kevin Pillar said on Sportsnet's broadcast.
"Do I think the boos are the best way to get him going? Maybe not, but fans have the right to be frustrated at this point in the season."
Pillar played parts of seven seasons in Toronto between 2013 and 2019 and remains a fan favorite from that era, now working as a Sportsnet analyst.
Why the numbers back up the frustration
Through 16 games in August, Guerrero is hitting .231 with a team-low .572 OPS.
He's now gone a full year without a regular-season home run at Rogers Centre.
Those numbers make the laugh look worse in hindsight, even if it was likely more discomfort than disrespect in the moment.
Manager John Schneider has already described Guerrero as frustrated behind closed doors, even if his public reactions don't always show it.
Pillar's comments add outside voice to a growing chorus questioning how Guerrero is handling this stretch publicly, not just statistically.
Toronto sits at 65-70, 3.5 games back of the final wild-card spot, with 27 games left.
The next two series, against Seattle and Cleveland, could decide the season. The Guardians hold the spot Toronto wants and have won eight of their last 10 games.
Every game left demands more from Guerrero than a shrug and a laugh. Whether he delivers that in time is still very much undecided.
Was Kevin Pillar right to call out Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for laughing off the boos?
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