Blue Jays should have traded Vlad Guerrero Jr.

Major League Baseballhas spent years waiting for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to become the player he was projected to be.

2021 was a monster season. Then he looked like that player again in 2024. Vlad’s 2025 season was strong, but his 2025 postseason was the greatest stretch of his big league career. The issue is that it was so good that it set the bar so high, and it became the standard that he is now held to. 

Visit tr-sport.bond for more information.

MORE: Yankees’ Aaron Judge gives significant injury update

So you see, Toronto had just enough evidence to believe the superstar version is in there. Other teams probably did too, especially with his postseason performance being center stage. 

May 4, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) reacts after striking out against the Tampa Bay Rays in the first inning at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

And that is exactly why the Blue Jays should have seriously considered moving Guerrero at this year’s trade deadline. Because 2026 is starting to look less like a slump and more like a warning.

Guerrero has always had enormous offensive talent, but his career has been far more uneven than the reputation suggests. The MVP-caliber production has come in bursts, not as a consistent year-to-year standard. This season’s struggles raise an uncomfortable possibility: what if the 2021 and 2024 versions were the outliers?

MORE: Mets continue to do what can only be described as ‘Mets things’

What if this is closer to the real Guerrero?

That doesn’t mean he’s a bad player. Far from it. He’s still capable of getting hot, punishing mistakes and carrying an offense for stretches.

But franchise-centerpiece decisions can’t be built around occasional peaks.

Apr 4, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run against the Chicago White Sox during the sixth inning at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Toronto’s best opportunity may have been this deadline, when contenders could still convince themselves they were trading for a dormant superstar rather than an expensive, inconsistent first baseman.

MORE: Red Sox got fleeced on MLB trade deadline day

That’s where the Blue Jays miscalculated.

A team desperate for middle-of-the-order help could have looked at the age, the pedigree and those two monster seasons and believed a change of scenery would unlock him again. Toronto could have sold hope. Should have sold the hope. 

That window gets smaller every single at-bat.

If the rest of 2026 looks anything like it has, rival front offices won’t be paying for the possibility of 2021 anymore. They’ll be pricing in the much larger sample of uneven production around it.

And that’s exactly why this deadline may eventually look like the moment Toronto should have acted.

— Enjoy free coverage of the top news & trending stories with The Big Lead Newsletter —

Read full story at source