3 players the Blue Jays should remain patient with, 2 they shouldn’t 

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

For the former three-time All-Star, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has had a rough go thus far in his 2024 MLB campaign. After having somewhat of a drop-off in production numbers for each of his past two seasons, Guerrero has struggled to a .239 average with a .711 OPS in 35 games to date. His 13 runs scored, 4 home runs and 15 RBI puts him on pace for just 60 runs scored, 19 home runs and 69 RBI over a 162-game schedule. Those numbers would be similar to his output back during his rookie season in 2019 when he was still in the process of adapting to major league pitching. In other words, not good for someone that’s one of the main offensive leaders of the team.

However, one has to remember that it was just three seasons ago when Guerrero finished second only to Shohei Ohtani for the AL MVP award, so it’s not like he has suddenly forgotten how to hit. What may be troubling Guerrero might only require some few minor adjustments to his game to get him back on track.

Perhaps the Jays can try to alter the batting order a bit to give Guerrero a different look at the plate, or maybe give him the odd rest day to let him have the opportunity to regroup his focus and reset his game. Nevertheless, he has currently registered a hit in each of his past eight games, including his breakout game on Sunday against the Washington Nationals where he mustered two hits including a grand slam in four at-bats. Hopefully, that is a positive sign showing that things are starting to turn around for one of the faces of the franchise, as any success the Blue Jays are to have will in large part rest on his shoulders.