Blue Jays fans are on pins and needles waiting for the arrival of its next baseball prodigal son. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. could make his Major League debut any day now and the rumour mill is running rampant with reports of his impending arrival.
The 20-year-old returned to triple-A with the Buffalo Bisons last week and hit a mammoth home run in his first game. Earlier this week, he crushed a home run out of the ballpark against the Pawtucket Red Sox.
INTO THE PARKING LOT!!!
Here's the MASSIVE home run #Bisons 3B Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit out of McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket!!! #BlueJays pic.twitter.com/DNSdztW5fc
— Buffalo Bisons (@BuffaloBisons) April 17, 2019
There’s no debate that he’s ready to hit at the big league level. The question is when the Blue Jays are planning to fit him onto their 25-man roster. Héctor Gómez, a journalist based out of the Dominican Republic, reported that Guerrero will get the call ahead of the Blue Jays/Giants series in Toronto that commences on Tuesday, April 23.
SOURCE: The Blue Jays will call up Vladimir Guerrero Jr. He will make his MLB's debut on Tuesday vs @SFGigantes, at Rogers Centre.#ZDigital #ZDeportes @z101digital @ZDeportes
— Héctor Gómez (@hgomez27) April 19, 2019
Tuesday would be perfect timing for Vladdy to arrive in Toronto. The Blue Jays have an off-day on Monday and the Bisons have an off-day on Sunday, which could put Guerrero in front of the home crowd for a debut versus the recently departed Kevin Pillar and the Giants.
Not so fast, though. Scott Mitchell of TSN and Keegan Matheson of Baseball Toronto corroborate that Guerrero isn’t quite ready, just yet.
I wouldn’t rush out and buy #BlueJays tickets for Tuesday just yet.
I’m told it’s highly unlikely Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is recalled without some sort of injury this weekend in Oakland.
“1% chance” was how it was put to me.— Scott Mitchell (@ScottyMitchTSN) April 19, 2019
With only a handful of games played with the Bisons this year, the team likely wants Guerrero to get a few more reps at third base before making the leap to the big leagues.
Poor weather is wreaking havoc with the Bisons’ schedule this week and they’ll miss Friday’s game, pushing Guerrero’s call-up back even further. At this point, April 30 in Los Angeles looks like a realistic debut date for MLB’s top prospect.
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In the meantime, Guerrero continues to hit the cover off the ball in triple-A and has yet to strike out in five games and 20 plate appearances with the Bisons. He has two home runs, one double and four singles since his return to triple-A last Thursday.
If you already scooped up seats to Tuesday’s series opener between the Blue Jays and Giants in anticipation of Guerrero’s arrival, at least you’ll get a look at Pillar and company.