Major league teams are showing a penchant for calling up prospects earlier than normal recently. The consensus top prospect has yet to get the call despite dominating in the minor leagues.
With the Nationals 19-year old outfielder Juan Soto getting the call up Sunday, the question is when does Vladimir Guerrero Jr. get the call? The Blue Jays third baseman is batting .423 with with 36 runs, eight home runs, 45 RBIs and a 1.168 OPS in 40 games at Double-A New Hampshire. He has 17 strikeouts and 17 walks.
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Guerrero Jr., the son of Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, has shown he’s too advanced for Double-A. The Blue Jays have Josh Donaldson at third base and could deal him by the trade deadline if the Blue Jays fall out of wild card contention.
The Blue Jays haven’t received much production from the DH spot, but the talk is that the Blue Jays want Guerrero to become better defensively. They are reluctant to call him up and have him be a regular DH.
Of course, there’s the Super 2 deadline, which is around early June. Calling up Guerrero Jr. before that deadline means the Blue Jays lose a year of his service at minimum salary. The Blue Jays are 23-25 going into Wednesday’s play, ten games behind the Red Sox for first place in the American League East and 9.5 behind the second-place Yankees, so winning the division is an extreme long shot.
For the Blue Jays to have a shot at one of the wild cards, they need to call up Guerrero Jr. Trying to predict when prospects will be called up is difficult. Willie Calhoun was drafted in the middle rounds of most leagues since it was assumed he would play every day in the outfield for the Rangers. He was sent to the minor leagues to begin the season and has yet to be called up.
Soto has played at three minor league levels this season and wasn’t expected to be called up this season, but injuries and Soto crushing minor league pitching sped up his arrival to the majors.
Guerrero Jr. is beginning to be added in Fantasy leagues and if he’s available, now is the time to pounce. He might be called up in June or it might come around the trading deadline. With his great approach at the plate, it’s clear he deserves a shot at the majors. Guerreo could be a difference maker in your run to a championship.
