The Blue Jays need more out of Vladimir Guerrero Jr as they continue to slide.
That is the hard truth around this club right now. The Blue Jays have reached the quarter mark of the season, and too much of the offense still feels stuck in neutral.
Guerrero's full stat line is not a disaster. He entered this week hitting .314 with an .814 OPS, numbers plenty of hitters would take.
But that is also what makes the conversation sharper. For a hitter signed to be the face of the lineup, 2 home runs and 16 RBI through 39 games is not enough thump.
Toronto's problem is not that Guerrero has been bad every night. It is that he has not consistently looked like the bat that bends a game or forces an opponent to pitch around the whole middle of the order.
The recent slide shows it. Over his first 8 games in May, Guerrero went 3-for-24 with no home runs and 1 RBI, a dry spell that matched the club's stale offensive stretch.
That is where the pressure changes. When a lineup is already searching for impact, Guerrero cannot just be solid. He has to be the player who drags the offense forward.
The Blue Jays need Guerrero to change the tone
Schneider's job is to keep the lineup moving, but this part is bigger than lineup card tweaks. George Springer can set the table and Daulton Varsho can give them energy, yet Toronto still goes where Guerrero's bat takes it.
That is why the home-run total matters more than the batting average. Guerrero is reaching base at a good clip, but the Blue Jays do not need a quieter version of him right now. They need damage.
The standings add more weight. Toronto entered the Rays series at 18-21, while Tampa Bay was 25-13, so these are no longer empty early-season games drifting by.
And the contract changes the lens, too. Guerrero's new 14-year, $500 million deal means every flat stretch will draw harder attention, fair or not.
That does not mean panic. It means accountability. Guerrero has shown before that he can carry this franchise for weeks at a time, and nobody in that dugout doubts his ability to get hot fast.
But Toronto is past the point where it can wait for that heat to show up whenever it feels like it. The Blue Jays need their best hitter to start looking like their biggest problem for pitchers again.
Because if Vladimir Guerrero Jr. stays this quiet for much longer, the Blue Jays will keep learning the same lesson: a decent version of their star is not enough to pull this season back into shape.
Do the Blue Jays need Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to start hitting for more power right now?
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