Will Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Ever Be the Same?

In the past couple of decades there have not been many prospects as talked about as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. But throughout his first 4+ seasons in the bigs, he has only posted one year above his career slash line, and in 2024 he has just 4 home runs in 35 games. Making everyone question whether 2021 was just an outlier, or a sign of what's to come.
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Title: Will Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Ever be the Same?
Current Fam: 5,347
Clarity: Some of the graphics are different from what I say because I gathered them after the voiceover. I'll look to improve that on the next video.
Music by Yuzzy:
bit.ly/2nUbGqD

[@xavierjackson8788]

I just feel like they messed with his swing too much and it doesn’t look natural anymore. I hope he bounces back as a jays fan

[@m.o.5291]

This. Either a coach or his dad undoubtedly with great intentions tried to turn him from one of the best power hitters in the game into a legend by making him a hybrid power/avg guy and making him kinda like vladdy sr but with a lot more power. It obviously backfired and now he's stuck in between swings. It'll take time to get his old swing back

[@katherineberger6329]

Yeah. Vladdy needs to clean up that swing and come to the plate with a plan. I feel like Vladdy's low point was being picked off second by Sonny & Carlos last fall. That was the worst baserunning mistake I can imagine.

[@heinz55]

His mechanics are the same. His timing on the toetap is really the only difference.

[@billyskittles1036]

Vladdy is the poster child for what can go wrong when your team has bad coaching and management and doesn’t understand how to work with you on hitting. His inflated ego doesn’t help, either.

[@MrGageHarrison]

Don’t blame it on coaching. He has no discipline. He’s a fat dude with no care. He has been given everything since he was a kid.

[@vicckyyy2001]

Yup. Blue Jays management is a complete train wreck. On paper, they seem to have an elite lineup and team, but they don't have any offense and/or proper leadership. They're a mess, and I'm a Jays fan. The ego is a problem too.

[@jasonthemagnificent2.0]

Getting in shape might help

[@Kingflowh]

He's gone from batting 206 to 302 in exactly a month from April 26 to May 26 🥴

[@sun6262-]

he lost feel but i think if the blue jays ever trade him he will jump right back into the game or maybe even better

[@leonardreardon5873]

Come to Cincinnati 🤣🤣

[@sun6262-]

@@leonardreardon5873 i can see him on the reds or the guardians

[@carsonteolis7204]

If the Jays trade Vladdy, I’ll never watch them again. I can’t believe how horrible they have been to the point where this is a question.

[@sun6262-]

@@carsonteolis7204 time to be an a's fan again theyre doing well this season lol

[@chodesu313]

This is 100% on the Jays. You right.

[@Guiltyconscience83]

I think it was foolish Baseball or baseball dosent exist did a vid on how “out of shape “ players become significantly worse after losing weight and getting healthy which makes sense. Most of these guys have been bigger their whole lives and after losing weight you have to kind of learn how to move in your new body.

[@dominicverdin5724]

Yep. I was just thinking of that video done by "baseball doesn't exist" it makes complete sense. Bro is gonna need to but he buffet to get this numbers back up. The irony.

[@GotFlow5]

Well Babe Ruth was fat and the greatest of all time so..

[@doc8013]

He had his best year of his career the year he lost all that weight, though, right?

[@jklax]

The league catches up to you.. Elite players overcome it. That simple.

[@deaconsmith8689]

This is an awesome video man, only a little over halfway through and loving it. Well done!!🎉

[@b1gbuck]

Thank you for keeping a consistent and non-exaggerating tone throughout this video. Almost every analytical, or informative video I come across seems to have that same extremely loud, overaccentuated wannabe announcer voice; like dude, why are you yelling? hahaha Great vid, new sub.

[@user-rw5gy4og5n]

Love the vids green light I’ve watched every vid since your padre one keep it up

[@3-0Greenlight]

Glad you enjoy them !

[@Vincentovich89]

Easy sub. Excellent work 👏. Keep these detailed analyses coming.

[@jamesfarrell8339]

I love these deep dives into great players Excellent video Fantastic job narrating Have a wonderful summer ☀️

[@3-0Greenlight]

Thank you for your kind words, I greatly appreciate it! I hope you have a great summer too!

[@stephencifuentes5907]

Thank you for making this video. I was wondering if anyone was ever going to make it. Im a mariners fan but i collect vladdy jr cards for my personal collection. Dude is a beast but just needs right hitting coach to break it down to him how you just did. Awsome video !

[@dariusbaja21]

Amazing breakdown n assessment my guy

[@georgejimas3292]

Going from approximately 1.300 OPS in minor league stadiums to .935 at Skydome is a massive difference. The sad truth is he's just an .800 OPS first baseman, nothing more. Hopefully the Jays don't pay more than $25M for him.

[@canu8028]

Incredible breakdown my friend i agree about everything in it

[@TroysPepperstick]

He's been hitting the ball hard for singles, building up that average as of late, so I'm not worried about him

[@jomama969]

Yeah I don’t get how you can say someone on pace for 180 hits and 30 doubles is struggling. This is the very definition of riding the highs and lows.

[@dylcor]

Great video man !! Keep it up, you'll be blowing up soon!

[@3-0Greenlight]

I appreciate your kind words :)

[@piercethomas8829]

I think the scouting / game plan prep has improved so much as more and more data is out there now. Guys have struggled after good seasons sometimes because the pitchers figure out what you can’t hit. Then you get force fed that sequence again and again until you either make an adjustment, get lucky,or play yourself out of pt. An example I always think of is Mike Trout having to learn how to hit the high fastball. He crushed everything low so teams stopped throwing it there. He became elite when he was able to adjust not just to that pitch specifically but his approach maturing as well. People forget everyone has a role on the team in some way or another. He may one day transition to more of a power o ly guy if the pull side emphasis is the way to go, and that’s fine there are plenty of guys like that (Matt Olson, Yordon Alverez, Aaron Judge) who you pay to hit the ball hard, hit bombs and drive in runs. Yes you want Vladdy to be an MVP every year, but that’s not realistic, even for the best players in the league. Like you said, he’s still young, give him time to adjust and figure out. Maybe it’s a new approach and he’s having a hard time getting the feel down. There’s so many different things that go into hitting that can make you be out of wack. My college coach said one time “you have to be precise and intentional with your swing every day because it can be one thing off just a little and you’re screwed.”

[@rocky_tee2861]

I think where he is recently is the kind of hitter he is, not the mvp runner up.

[@SportsPlug-cp1eq]

Delusional

[@nolanhughes1399]

🤣

[@cwatson42785]

Yup exactly. Pitchers fiqured out how to pitch him

[@atom-bomboriginal6387]

He was obviously on peds that year if he lost 40 pounds of fat while adding muscle in one off-season lol.

[@gnielsen07]

@@SportsPlug-cp1eqhe’s had a sub .800 ops in 4 of his 6 seasons. He’s a good hitter. He’s not a generational hall of fame talent like he was proclaimed to be

[@Shinobi33]

He's still mad young. He's just gotta be himself and not fall for the hype. Cause these young baseball fans will tear you down as soon as they built you up.

[@m.o.5291]

Almost as if his dad tried to help his classic power hitting son becoming a true legend by teaching him the skills he posessed. Don't forget that Vlad Sr statistically was as hard to strikeout as Ichiro was, that's crazy for a guy with almost 500hrs. It obviously backfired and now he's stuck in between swings. It will take time to get the old swing back. It could ofcourse also been a coach but im expecting he tried to impart some things his dad did to a legendary level into his game. Especially since you see him use his hands more, which is exactly what vlad sr did when he was in 'contact mode'

[@prickly10000]

I remember the Blue Jays we're ready to induct this guy into the Hall of Fame even before he joined the team 😆

[@aaronbachiu8690]

I'm a jays fan and would really enjoy watching them play more if Bo and Vladdy could get it going ... not a fun season to watch so far and it really is a pity

[@Kenny_G]

Sheesh you're being too kind to them, this is a dumpster-fire of a season. They're horrific hitting wise, Vlad just fell below .700 OPS. The only players above .800 OPS are Justin Turner and Davis Schneider (who?!) with most being in the .500s for OPS. The only saving grace is comfortably betting against them if I'm gonna wager...

[@lishansanjay]

@@Kenny_Gwdym who Justin turner and Schneider are the best jays players

[@jkrayz]

@@lishansanjayuhhhh a 40 year old man and a rookie are the best blue jay players is a crazy crazy statement 💀

[@lishansanjay]

@@jkrayz look at the rest of the lineup

[@sir.muffiniii7011]

@@Kenny_Gvlad isn’t below .700

[@matt-io3bg]

HES BACKKKKK!!! some what he’s been hitting real good these last 2 weeks and got his average up to .280

[@ForceofNature99]

Indeed. This video was unfortunately to premature.

[@ForceofNature99]

Vlad's batting .286 now with a .381 OBP so his hitting is actually really good, but yeah, he still needs to untap his power. Got to increase the launch angle on those 110MPH+ hits.

[@3-0Greenlight]

For some clarity, at 1:43 I'm talking about of players aged 22 or younger.

[@KryMoore]

You should also clarify that Austin Riley is a third baseman not a first basemen.

[@benluna6158]

⁠@3-0Greenlight yeah you rlly should dude

[@LoSoNBanks22]

He’s kinda getting back on track right now

[@ForceofNature99]

It's kinda funny if you look at his numbers now compared to when this video was posted. Though yes, he needs to find a way to untap his HR power, though a .286 avg with a .381 OBP is nothing to snuff at.

[@henrynglaphei713]

Please make a video on Mark Reynolds, just found out he had a 44 hr season that has the all time highest strike out of 223

[@grindsmartnothard]

We've gotta remember that he's only 25. Not to mention his avg exit velo is 96th percentile and his hard hit % is 95th percentile. He'll bounce back. All of his deeper numbers point to it.

[@felixnunez1]

He is extremely talented and very young still, im suure he will figire it out sooner rather than later. I am frustrated as a fan though because i want to see those crazy numbers again.

[@Th3DarkCanuck]

As a Jays fan, I think 2021 was an outlier.

[@sawyerlarmand848]

He needs to start his load slower and earlier and use his front foot like as a stoping point to stay behind the ball in my opinion. I think he’s relaying on his hands to much to provide power and needs to get back into his legs and use the ground force a bit more, like he was doing in 2021

[@NotExplicable]

Combination of things his body change, multiple mechanics changes, swing discipline, pitching has improved over time versus him adjusting to better pitching, lack of lineup depth protection (Teo, Seimen, Gurriel Jr.) Also Bo's dad used to advise on hitting until he stopped for some reason.

[@chrislewis5069]

I believe young guys have some amazing seasons until there is an in depth book on how to pitch them. I've seen it with tatia, j rod, Corbin Carroll, etc

[@jomama969]

He averaged 158 games, 165 hits, 30 doubles, 30 home runs and 95 RBIs with a slash line of .269 .342 .462 and an OPS+ of 125 between 2022 and 2023. Are we sure you guys aren’t just expecting too much out of him? He’s literally on pace for 180 hits and 30 doubles. I’d take 9 of those guys in a lineup all day.

[@no4264]

My thoughts are after the 21 season when he started working out more they changed his body composition. In other words the way they added muscle changed his swing just slightly and slowed it just slightly and now we are seeing the results of that. It is possible because he is still young he will adapt but unless they change his workout routine to match his body type more I think this will be all you get. He doesn’t need muscle added he needs workouts that just give him speed and endurance. Then we might see his swing come back.

[@bcbphilosophy]

Austin riley isn't a first baseman 3:59

[@3-0Greenlight]

In the Stathead search filter I must have forgotten to make it for qualified first basemen. Riley has spent time at first, that's how he got thrown in with them. Thanks for letting me know!

[@Joshua-fz5zx]

I have the hand eye coordination of a blind sloth. I don't know how you people do this. All my strength and speed would mean almost nothing in baseball. I love watching the sport but hated playing it. 😂

[@danielcarneiro8312]

From what i got from this video, and from the comments, is that that the Blue Jays coaches messed up his swing, and he's now always swinging late, ence why he's missing fastballs, hitting the ball to opposite field and why he's been hitting a lot of ground balls, because if you swing just a little late then you're not going to hit the ball well and the chance of being a ground ball are higher. So basically he just needs to swing a little early

[@ronmurray7349]

Vlady was 34th in all of Baseball in RBI last year. He lead the Jays. The Jays took him to arbitration for less than $1 Million. I think the Jays will trade both Bo and Vlady in July. The $225 Million in Salary scares the bean counters at Rogers. They only got 27,000 Season Tics sold and their Salary hit is $225 Million USD.

[@bbvids8630]

Its the steady regression that's most alarming - it doesn't make any sense at his age and stage to be getting worse for the 3rd year in a row unless the coaching staff has ruined him... which I suppose is possible. He might regain his form, but it will be with another team. A .300 BA is surprisingly unhelpful with no power and average defense at a non-premium position.

[@Flexb123]

He hit alot of OPPO HRs in 21 also, like 1/3 of them were OPPO something he rarely does now outside the 1 at yankees stadium. I think the coaches have messed with him too much also

[@nickmacleod2368]

Those EV + LA stats for outs is pretty absurd. It could be a spin problem, if his spin RPM is low (ie he is squaring the ball up too much) he will have less carry on his flyballs. Could be a reason why his hard hit flyballs aren't leaving the yard much.

[@PopOutPaulie]

Well 13 days later and vlad feels like he's coming back. He's putting up some solid stats in May. In 15 games he's hitting over 400 with a 475 obp and a 975 ops. He only has 1hr though

[@jonathanbrown8733]

It’s almost like he’s worked so much on being able to hit the ball everywhere that now he can’t hit the ball anywhere

[@michaelcalhoun4470]

He’s only 25 he still have time

[@Katsos44]

He’s chopping down at the ball in an effort to not be late on the pitch, which means he also can’t pull the ball since you have to be a bit early in order to pull a ball, he also gets less exit velo as his launch angle rises to good rates, I don’t get how he’s so extremely late on everything, its like he doesn’t see a pitch until it’s only 30 feet away, in 2021, he swung so much earlier on everything, you’d think he would at least improve his vision or walk rate if he waited so long to swing but even that hasn’t changed, Vladdy can’t hit anymore, its one thing to sacrifice one aspect of your game for another, but vladdy can’t hit a fastball with his swing so ruined and his swing decisions so late every single pitch, its over

[@danglesnipecelly13]

Still only 25. I think he’ll turn things around.

[@ju-joobmcnoob3222]

Too me it looks like his 2021 set-up, he was "closed"; 2024 he's "opened" more...

[@bbrooks34]

Sounds like he needs a good hitting coach

[@kushclarkkent6669]

Let's put him on the show cover again cuz why not! Acuna got screwed for this guy!

[@nelly112nels]

I’m a big Vladdy fan and it sucks to see him struggle like this. He seems to be putting in the work, loosing weight, winning the gold glove, which means he has been dedicating time to that side of the ball as well. He is hitting the ball hard, he is making contact and putting the ball in play A LOT. And he is getting a bit unlucky with them turning into outs. I hope things turn his way soon because baseball is better when you have the stars doing what the stars are supposed to be doing. It’s good for the sports and it helps grow the sports as a whole. Best of luck to young Vlad

[@Griffletgaming]

Bat Speed Bat Speed Bat Speed goes for every player on the Jays. I'm shocked that the coaching staff have job still

[@WishIWasACloud]

Make video about current Trevor Bauer

[@Max-oi6op]

This is who hes been. That 2021 season was an outlier.

[@YouTubeChannell7]

I don’t think it’s much of a mechanics problem as it is a “fun” problem….notice that since they removed the home run jacket, Teo Hernandez and Gurriel Jr he has been declining??? He has what a few pitchers who are Dominican, that’s it now, he looks lost and just sad.

[@m.o.5291]

Nah. His swing is so much more hand focused instead of his legs. It's like what his father did when he was in trouble and would still get to a pitch above his head. He was as hard to strikeout as ichiro after all. Which is crazy for a power hitter. Implementing those skills into the kids game who has great plate discipline and even more power could have made him a legend. They tried. It didn't work out, and you don't just switch back to an old swing. Muscle memory is very complex, especially if you changed it and are trying to revert those changes

[@Notjackpausner]

Maybe if he stops the ice baths every single home win

[@coolbreeze4249]

Linsanity of the mlb

[@slimslanginslinky]

3:55 Austin Riley is not a first baseman

[@ThePrayinmantiz]

It looks like he's thinking too much in my opinion...🤷🏾‍♂️

[@stephenedelstein2128]

Constructive criticism: should’ve used ops+ when discussing the hitter-friendly conditions in Buffalo v. Toronto… ops+ is park adjusted.

[@BiNNNBin]

He is not a flyball hitter he is a line drive hitter and the coaches have been trying to get him to lift it which isn’t made for him

[@454fire]

I do agree that Vlad played well in 2021 outside of the minor league stadiums, but I think the bigger harm that season did was the expectations we have of him. He posted a .311/.401/.601 slash line at 22 years old as the runner up for MVP behind Ohtani. With those numbers, the expectation is a perennial 1.000 OPS hitter for the next decade. That has not been the case, and he would've never hit to that mark had he not played at those minor league parks, which inflated his stats. Could he still be an elite .900 OPS hitter? Sure. Just imagine if he played all home games for 2021 in Rogers Centre that season and ended with let's say 35 Homers and a .900 OPS. The expectations for him would be significantly less as of right now because people wouldn't be looking at that incredible stat line of 2021 as the mark to get back to..

[@kevink2020]

Vladdy was great but he was never the MOST FEARED hitter on the planet.

[@taylerthompson7559]

He was made a superstar by Canadian media without warning it leading to ego problems now he has plateaued. He has been bad since mid season last year.

[@chilldawg1608]

I think that Vlad Guerrero Jr. wont be the same because it’s the curse. He’s the cover athlete on MLB The Show 24. And you know in NBA 2k some players became trash because they were the cover athlete in 2k. So that’s the reason why Vlad Guerrero Jr. won’t be the same as he was in 2021. Sadly😢

[@DanteLozada.]

I never liked the go oppo all the time don’t pull the ball approach. And vladdy’s stats shows you shouldn’t always want to go oppo.

[@ClaudeLachance-sg6dt]

Ever since he started losing weight in the offseasons hes been declining. Its like each offseason he loses weight, the media hypes it up then he comes back worse.

[@haydenthrower4710]

He will never be his father

[@patskers1]

I predict he gets moved to StL this offseason as the cards will need a 1B to replace Goldy.

[@hughmungus_698]

He’s like 25 years old right? He’s probably got another 8-10 years at the highest level Chill bro

[@Lesposito25]

I don’t get why he’s mlb the show 24 cover athlete tbh

[@cokesquirrel]

I always think of these guys at the same time. Why is nobody talking about Fernando tatis junior? He looks like he's going downhill also

[@mrfake675]

I feel for her. Why Vlady why?

[@DanteLozada.]

He’s not doing anything differently. His swing is the same. It’s just like Christian Yelich whom had a good year after buying into the conventional teaching. But after having one good year it ruined him, now the same thing is happening to Vlad jr.

[@hendricknunez3913]

Bluejays don’t deserve vladdy. I feel he is frustrated by not getting a long term deal. There is also a mental battle between them.

[@dillonunruh5766]

It’s cuz he was on the mlb the show cover

[@lovedavantlamour301]

Bruh this dude has the body of his father when senior was a prospect looking for a pro contract at the dodgers dominican summer league complex , vlad sr had all the tools as a teenager but never got taken seriously until he put down the rice and plantains and lost all that baby fat , jr is literally one of the most disappointing athletes on the planet because he’s a guy that could consistently put up 40-25 seasons but he just doesn’t take his conditioning seriously , baseball doesn’t want prince fielders anymore , I hope he gets his shit together but as an o’s fan I also kind of hope he doesn’t , I mean yea , pretty sure if the jays take him to arbitration again he’s as good as gone

[@lovedavantlamour301]

If the new ownership are serious about competing we should give them mountcastle + norby / stowers / kjerstad for vlad jr

[@doublem1975x]

His dad was more built. Jr is bottom heavy like woman.

[@DanteLozada.]

Maybe, but he has a conventional swing so I don’t see him getting any better. He put up good numbers because he’s 245 pounds, game is different for someone like him, it’s his swing that is holding him back.

[@Frozenduckling]

He would be good on the Yankees or astros he needs no pressure like Javier biaz.

[@TayUnkown_23]

All big market teams LMFAOOO with World Series no thanks

[@ronmurray7349]

Vlady has said he will Never play for the Yankees, LAD maybe. Teoscar plays there and LA is a Spanish speaking city

[@TayUnkown_23]

@@ronmurray7349 no

[@TayUnkown_23]

@@ronmurray7349 yall got that general tso pitcher already

[@yuewon4001]

They have to stop changing the balls man..

[@CryptoJosh]

Angels will sign him!

[@user-in7th5uo1m]

Trade Vladdy to Arizona and watch him come to life. Back with Guriel and Moreno his barrio buddies. He’s just a big kid. Needs to have fun and be recognized. Jay’s became too serious for Vladdy. The NO FUN DUGOUT!

[@mjrt34]

Showing swings he was late on versus a swing he pulled means nothing. He has a launch angle sweet spot issue. Too many ground balls.

[@coolfool2100]

Did he lose too much weight? As ironic as that sounds, maybe his body hasn’t been able to adjust just yet

[@adamc-sv2tp]

I think it’s the weight loss and bad coaching.

[@AustrianPainter14]

All of these sons of big leaguers benefited from nepotism. They outperformed their fathers out of the gate but slowed down because the league caught up with them. No way Cavan biggio or cam bedrosian, Sean burrows, Josh barfield etc should ever got the call.

[@isiahcarattini7783]

PETE ALONSO NEXT

[@willshad]

One thing for sure, he won't be as good as his dad.

[@Trollyaccount]

Send him to the Angels 😇

[@Dodgers-sw2uk]

Just wait until a contract season

[@alegradance]

that was this year.... and next year

[@Dodgers-sw2uk]

@@alegradance next year is his contract year

[@joelhartung3776]

Jays coaching the problem……?

[@TheGhostMan1]

Sano 2.0?

[@87alock]

Kinda mad I picked this dude 1st on my Fantasy Team

[@vicckyyy2001]

I feel bad for you

[@riding4beers889]

analytics ruined baseball

[@OxidizeTunes]

I'd like to say that the ball feels dead this year, a whole lot of 105+mph 20+ degree launch hits are just not going out anymore

[@MrKevinbat]

He needs to gain his weight back

[@leafyutube]

Another Jose Cruz Jr.

[@SO-if3yn]

He’s shown us what he is. He’s an average MLB hitter, and below average on defense (gold glove was not earned). He’s not an All-Star. His 2024 is on par with every year, his MVP season was an outlier

[@sir.muffiniii7011]

A career 130 OPS+ isn’t average lol

[@SO-if3yn]

@@sir.muffiniii7011 average out per year and take away the MVP year. He’s an average hitter. Not the total war combined. But I hope I’m wrong.

[@sir.muffiniii7011]

@@SO-if3yn I hope you are too, but a 133 OPS+ in 22 is still great, and he’s been above average every year

[@jasonjay1053]

Come to the Yankees

[@EthanNiedorowski]

The one year they played in a aaa park at home and they go off huh

[@emupike6]

Except all his home runs would have been the same at Rogers Stadium. League just learned how to pitch to him

[@EthanNiedorowski]

They