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Jays' top prospect Guerrero Jr. working his way back from injury

By Matt Loede
Jays top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (L) is working his way back from a strained oblique muscle suffered during a swing at the plate. File Photo by Rhona Wise/EPA
Jays top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (L) is working his way back from a strained oblique muscle suffered during a swing at the plate. File Photo by Rhona Wise/EPA

March 12 (UPI) -- The top prospect in baseball is still hoping to be back sooner than later from a strained oblique muscle, as the Toronto Blue Jays await his recovery.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been on the outside looking in since straining his oblique, and at this point the team hopes that he will be back in action early in the 2019 season.

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While fans are anxious to see what the 20-year-old can do when he has an extended time in the Majors, the team wants to make he's completely healthy before he starts to play again.

Guerrero was injured during a spring training game last week for the Jays when he took a swing at the plate.

There have been rumblings over Guerrero's conditioning, as the team in February revised his weight to 250 -- after before being listed at 200 pounds by the team.

"No concerns," Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro told MLB.com when asked about any issues regarding Guerrero's conditioning.

"I think we've been very consistent from Day 1," Shapiro said. There's one tool when it comes to Vladdy's development that so far outpaces every other aspect of his development. That we've got concerns about every other piece of his development, trying to catch that up to his hit tool."

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Guerrero had just 19 trips to the plate this spring before suffering the injury, and went 4-for-19 with one RBI and one run scored.

The prospect did not seem to be overly concerned about having to miss about three weeks of action for the injury.

"I just need to make sure I'm healthy and getting ready to come back," Guerrero said through a translator to MLB.com

"Injuries are a part of baseball and I understand that. So I'll just be working hard to get back after Spring Training."

The team is expecting Guerrero, when cleared to play again, to be sent down and play at Triple-A Buffalo, but there is no question he will play with the Major League team in 2019, and some say he could be up by late April with Toronto.

The son of former Major League Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero was impressive last season in the minors, hitting .402 with 14 home runs and 60 RBIs with Double-A New Hampshire.

In Triple-A Buffalo he hit .336 with six home runs and 16 RBIs in 30 games, numbers that have the Jays and their fans excited.

For now, the excitement is on hold until Guerrero is back to 100 percent.

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