Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was born to be an enemy of the New York Yankees.
Before Friday night, when he hit a first-inning homer in the Bronx, Guerrero Jr., the son of a Hall of Famer, was hitting .289 against the Bombers with an .864 OPS.
He’s a Yankee killer in the field, and he hates them too.
In November he said he would never sign with the Yankees, not even [when I’m] dead.»
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Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees, left, with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium on April 13, 2022 in New York City. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
The Toronto Blue Jays have tried to light a fire with the Yanks both on and off the field. Guerrero said during the offseason that the Yankees were the «easiest team» to play last season despite the Jays’ losing record against them and the Yankees winning the AL East.
Blue Jays ace Alek Manoah has called Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole the biggest cheater in MLB history. The two will start for their respective teams in the Bronx on Saturday morning, so get your popcorn ready.
Manoah didn’t exactly regret her choice of words on Friday. «I said what I said» said friday.
Before the first meeting between the American League East foes, the 24-year-old Guerrero doubled down on his hatred for the Yankees, but it seems to go well beyond the field.
«It’s something personal. It goes back to my family,» Guerrero said through an interpreter Friday. «That is my decision, and I will never change that.»
Vladimir Guerrero of the Toronto Blue Jays singles against the New York Yankees in the sixth inning during a game at Rogers Center on September 27, 2022 in Toronto. (Mark Blinch/Getty Images)
The comments were similar to those of Ken Griffey Jr., who once said he would never play for the Yankees, either, adding that he would retire if they were the only team to offer him a contract.
«I came to visit my dad, and it was just him and me. I got to the stadium early and I was sitting on the bench, and the security guard came up and said, ‘[Then-Yankees owner George Steinbrenner] he doesn’t want anybody on the bench,'» Griffey Jr. said, remembering when his father, Ken. Sr., was with the Yankees.
«My dad was like, ‘What? He’s my son.’ So he said, ‘Okay, go to my locker. But before you go, check out third base.’ He’s the son of Graig Nettles taking ground balls in the Third base.
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«And, at the time, my father was 38 years old. He said, ‘I’m not going to fight this anymore. I’ve got someone a little bit younger. And a little bit better.’
«There are certain things that a parent instills in you as a child that just sticks with you. And [to beat the Yankees] I was one of them.»
Toronto Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singles off Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Drew Rasmussen during the third inning of a game on August 2, 2022 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
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Guerrero Jr. admitted he gets a little more excited playing in the Bronx.
«Since you’re a little kid, you’ve dreamed of playing at Yankee Stadium,» Guerrero said. «It’s always a ballpark where you want to come, you want to perform, you want to hit. That’s my mindset all the time when I come here.»
Guerrero Jr. is off to a good start, hitting .338 in his first 19 games.