DUNEDIN, Fla. -- One lazy morning in February, the Blue Jays, still bundled in hoodies, were running through an infield drill.
It was the type of drill that belonged in February, with packs of players standing at every position, cycling through. These drills tend to have an unofficial end time, stretching on until two or three coaches look at one another and nod. The drill ran through one last time, but after the catcher skipped a throw to second base, a voice from the infield boomed above the crowd.
¡°Again!¡± they shouted. ¡°Go again!¡±
It was Vladimir Guerrero Jr., twirling his finger in the air. Without hesitation, the Blue Jays ran through the drill one more time.
There are two Vladdy stories this spring, one towering over the other. Guerrero¡¯s contract negotiations, which have continued to become the distraction he said he didn¡¯t want, will be the story of the season. After years of viewing Guerrero through only a joyful lens, it suddenly forced a fan base to confront the business realities of baseball. None of these fans wear jerseys with ¡°business realities¡± written across the back, though. This hasn¡¯t been fun for anyone.
Standing in the long shadow of that story is still Vladdy, the baseball player. Whether Guerrero¡¯s 2025 season is the end of an era or the launchpad for his legacy, it still matters in its own right. Guerrero is still every bit the intimidating power hitter, but what¡¯s changed is his voice.
Guerrero is growing into the leader the Blue Jays have waited for. Speaking Thursday in fluent, confident English, he explained why this matters and why it took him time to get here.
¡°I want to be more vocal. If you need me, I¡¯m going to be right over there,¡± Guerrero said. ¡°In the past, I didn¡¯t like it because I didn¡¯t like somebody laughing about my English, but now I can speak more English and I feel more comfortable speaking. It¡¯s way better. I can communicate with everybody.¡±
Guerrero has long done group media sessions with an interpreter and will continue to, but it¡¯s important to explain why. Those media scrums can be messy and disorganized, with different voices clumsily talking over one another. Add in a camera that¡¯s broadcasting Guerrero¡¯s voice and face to hundreds of thousands of people? It¡¯s completely understandable for Guerrero to continue wanting to maintain a level of comfort in those situations, speaking in Spanish.
He¡¯s grown comfortable doing one-on-one interviews in English, though, and he¡¯s had a good teacher.
¡°It¡¯s hard, but my daughter has helped me a lot,¡± Guerrero said. ¡°I only speak with her in English, so that¡¯s why I¡¯m getting better.¡±
It¡¯s easy to see this each day now in the Blue Jays¡¯ clubhouse, in the cages or on the back fields. Guerrero is connected with everyone. He calls the clubhouse ¡°way, way better¡± than a year ago, and from his tone alone, you can tell he truly feels it.
That¡¯s why Guerrero feels more comfortable speaking up in these spots where he once preferred to blend in.
¡°This is Spring Training. We have to practice to be perfect. We have to be perfect,¡± Guerrero said. ¡°To me, every time we do something, we have to be perfect. I come here every day and try to get us better, no matter what is happening.¡±
These things can be contagious. No manager -- no matter how great -- can replicate the leadership of a team¡¯s best player truly taking those reins.
Even club president Mark Shapiro, who rarely strays from the objective when discussing baseball, sees the value of this in Guerrero. This is why these negotiations are unlike any we¡¯ve seen recently in Toronto, even those spectacular heartbreaks. Guerrero already means so much to so many people here.
¡°It¡¯s often the players who bring joy to the ballpark,¡± Shapiro said. ¡°I¡¯ve talked about Kirby Puckett. That guy made it better for every single human being to come to the ballpark. Whether it was the ushers, the clubhouse guys, the trainers, the strength coaches, everyone enjoyed coming to the ballpark more. That, over 162 games, has enormous power. Someone like Vlad, who has an electric smile, who has fun playing the game in even the toughest moments, that is a form of leadership.¡±
This is who Guerrero can be. We¡¯re seeing a fuller version of him now, which only adds more anxiety to what his future might look like. Guerrero only wants to talk about baseball now, though -- to the relief of many -- and he keeps coming back to one thing.
¡°My goal? Win it all.¡±