By: Sam Aucoin
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is a happy guy so far in Blue Jays’ spring training. Guerrero Jr. noticed immediate changes to how things were operated during the team’s practice Tuesday morning in Dunedin, Florida.
“Since I got here, since I opened the doors to the clubhouse [I] can see a different vibe,” said Guerrero Jr. through interpreter Hector Lebron. After his comments at the end of last season calling for change, General Manager Ross Atkins and President Mark Shapiro made structure changes a priority this offseason.
“They told us (the whole team) that they were going to work on that. And so far it’s looking that way,” Guerrero added.
Guerrero Jr. believes the team is on an upward trend after a rough end in 2023. A 2-0 series loss to the Minnesota Twins also saw the Jays’ first-baseman get picked off second base, leading to a lot of angry comments from fans.
Making themselves heard, Jays fans stormed to social media to express their outrage on the elimination game and the season in general. Many of these comments were directed at Vladdy, mostly caused by the play at second base, but they believe the three-time all-star had another down season.
Manager John Schneider recognized frustrations from last season when talking with the media last Saturday.
“No one was happy with last season,” Schneider said. He also mentioned that a lot of players took it upon themselves to improve this offseason including Guerrero Jr.
“A lot of these guys (the players) were talking about it in the offseason and they did just that,” Toronto’s bench boss added, praising his players for sticking to routines during the winter.
The team’s optimism will be put to the test on March 28th as the Blue Jays open their 2024 campaign.
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