Short on proclamations, Guerrero Jr. aims for return to MVP-like form at spring training | CBC Sports

Vladimir Guerrero Jr., provided one of the better lines of spring training last year when he proclaimed the Blue Jays’ 2021 season was the trailer and the 2022 campaign would be the movie.

It turned out to be a shorter film than he’d hoped. Toronto’s post-season run lasted the minimum two games.

There were no such proclamations on Friday when Guerrero held his first formal media availability of the spring.

“This year I’m not going to say anything,” he said with a smile via interpreter Hector Lebron. “You guys will have to watch.”

The young slugger hit 32 homers, drove in 97 runs and hit .274 in 2022 — a career season for many players. But coming off a second-place finish in the MVP race, it was a slight dip in production.

Guerrero admitted he put a lot of pressure on himself and was a little anxious at times in the batter’s box.

Mental prep, pitch selection key

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said teams were “pretty consistent” in how they tried to attack him, including trying to get him to chase pitches outside the zone.

“Like any young player, there’s going to be an adjustment and then a readjustment based on what the league is doing,” he said. “So I think that’s the main part of it is just really swinging at the right pitches.”

Mental preparation and pitch selection will be key, Guerrero said.

“As a ballplayer, you want to get better every year,” he said. “You guys know the numbers that I put up in ’21. Last spring training, I came here and tried to [produce] even better numbers. I think that affected me a little bit.

“But this year, I’m coming with a plan. I’m just going to trust my talent and I’m just going to keep working hard and hopefully everything goes well.”

Schneider said it’s common for many hitters to see an ebb and flow with their swing mechanics over the course of a season.

“There were times where he was probably closing himself off a little bit and then opening up a little bit too early,” he said. “You couple that with where the pitches were actually being thrown, I think that’s what we saw.”

Anchor of powerful lineup

Guerrero will help anchor a batting order with plenty of pop. Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins also made some moves to shore up team defence and provide more left-handed bats.

The outfield has a new look with George Springer moving from centre to right field. Teoscar Hernandez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr., were shipped out and replaced by Kevin Kiermaier and Daulton Varsho.

“I think understanding that the way our lineup is going to be balanced out, it doesn’t always have to be him that’s getting the big hit,” Schneider said of Guerrero. “It could be him getting a guy over or it could be him drawing a walk.

The Blue Jays also added some arms to the bullpen in the off-season and Chris Bassitt was signed to shore up a rotation that lost Ross Stripling to free agency.

A solid young core — anchored by Guerrero, shortstop Bo Bichette and ace Alek Manoah — will be counted on to help Toronto take the next step after wild-card round exits in two of the last three years.

The Blue Jays’ Grapefruit League schedule kicks off Feb. 25 against Pittsburgh. The regular season kicks off March 30 at St. Louis.

The Seattle Mariners swept Toronto last fall, two years after the Blue Jays were swept by the Tampa Bay Rays in the wild-card series.

The Blue Jays’ last post-season victory came in 2016 when the club reached the American League Championship Series for the second straight year. Toronto last won the World Series in 1993.

Canada’s Thompson reflects on World Series run

Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson has had a few months to reflect on his team’s long post-season run last fall.

The Canadian took over as skipper in June when the Phillies were 22-29. He helped turn things around and led the Phillies all the way to the World Series, where they dropped a six-game series to the Houston Astros.

After the dust settled, Thomson said his brother asked him how it really felt to manage in the Fall Classic.

“I said before the game and after the game, it felt like the World Series because it was just all the media and all the stuff that you have to do,” Thomson said at a Grapefruit League availability of managers and GMs at the Blue Jays’ spring complex.

“But during the game, I don’t know why, I just could lock in and it was just like any other game. We went through our normal process and I think the players did the same thing.”

Thomson, a native of Sarnia, Ont., grew up in nearby Corunna, Ont.

He became the first Canadian to serve as a manager in the World Series since 1887, when Bill Watkins of Brantford, Ont., guided the Detroit Wolverines to victory over the St. Louis Browns.

Tiedemann intrigue

Yusei Kikuchi and Mitch White are the favourites to land the No. 5 starter role with the Blue Jays this spring, but prospect Ricky Tiedemann also presents an intriguing option for team brass.

The 20-year-old left-hander was 5-4 with a 2.17 earned-run average in the minor leagues last season. The six-foot-four 220-pounder is the team’s top prospect and is ranked No. 32 on the MLB list.

Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said he doesn’t think the club needs to temper his expectations at all but rather have him focus on the process.

“He is as focused on it as any young player that I’ve been around,” Atkins said.

Tiedemann, a native of Long Beach, Calif., was selected by the Blue Jays in the third round of the 2021 draft.

‘Baby watch’

Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk will be a late arrival at camp as his fiancee could give birth at any time over the coming days.

The couple announced the baby news on Instagram last August, posing by home plate at Rogers Centre and holding up a small red jersey with Kirk’s No. 30 on the back.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider has provided updates at the end of his media availabilities in recent days.

“Still on baby watch,” he said Friday afternoon. “I thought it was going to be yesterday but my last update this morning was ‘Not quite yet.’

“Hopefully soon,” he added with a smile.

Kirk, a Tijuana resident, will represent Mexico at next month’s World Baseball Classic.