Vladimir Guerrero Jr. opens up on ‘frustrating’ Toronto Blue Jays season

It's a fall from grace that's hard to fathom.

Over the last two seasons, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was one of the best players in baseball. He finished 13th in MVP voting last season and was a beast in the playoffs. The year prior, he was statistically even more dominant in the regular season, finishing sixth overall in MVP voting.

However, the 2026 version of Guerrero Jr. looks like a ghost of his former self.

The 27-year-old is on pace for the worst On Base plus Slugging percentage of his career. His .262 batting average is tied for a career-worst. He only has six home runs in 99 games.

Despite everything that's gone wrong for Guerrero Jr. and the Blue Jays, the Dominican star is still believing.

“Like I say to the guys, there's still 58 games left," Guerrero Jr. told reporters through his translator before Toronto played the Boston Red Sox on Saturday.

"I know I can get better. It's frustrating. But, like I said, 58 games left, you know how baseball is, anything can happen. Myself and the rest of the guys, we're just going to continue to play hard, and we'll see at the end of the season.”

July has been slightly better statistically for Guerrero after a June where his OPS of .458 represented the worst month of his career.

However, he's still miles away from his former MVP level. Guerrero Jr. was also booed on home soil earlier this week, amidst a 2-8 stretch for the Jays before their game against the Boston Red Sox on Saturday.

You couldn't blame Jays fans for being frustrated. However, Guerrero Jr. preached patience when asked what his message to fans was.

"To be patient. I mean, I know things are not going the way we wanted, but I can promise all our fans that every time we go out there, the goal is to win the game."

"We're humans, and sometimes things don't happen the way you want, regardless of your preparation; that's baseball."

"I know [the fans] have always been there for us while we are winning, but we need our fanbase to be here now because you never know; things can change."

After a bevy of losses here in July, having faith in a postseason berth seems foolish.

But crazier things have happened, as teams like the 2011 St. Louis Cardinals or 2011 Tampa Bay Rays would tell you.