Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is nearing a return to the lineup.
The Toronto Blue Jays first baseman will remain out on Friday against the Philadelphia Phillies (6:40 p.m ET on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+), but he's trending towards a Saturday return, manager John Schneider told reporters.
Friday will be Guerrero's third consecutive game missed with hamstring tightness, but he'll do more work pre-game to see if he's available off the bench. This adds to Guerrero's personal record for games missed in a season, with this being his ninth of 2026.
"The work part has been more than it ever has been over the course of his career, and that's playing into the physical part where, you know, the hammy's a little bit tired as he goes," Schneider said of Guerrero Jr.'s workload and struggles during an appearance on Sportsnet 590's Blair & Barker.
Replacing him at first is Kazuma Okamoto, who will start there for the sixth time this year.
The Blue Jays are in the middle of a stretch of 17 straight games, and 30 in 31 days. Guerrero also sat on July 29 due to right hamstring tightness sustained the previous night.
"Yeah, he's banged up a little bit, but at no point is it to the point where it's really affecting him," Schneider said. "Whenever he's in there, we feel like he's good enough to be the best version of him."
The 27-year-old has posted the worst offensive numbers of his career so far in 2026, with just six home runs, 44 RBI and a .687 OPS.
Guerrero is in the first season of a 14-year, $500-million contract that runs until he is 40 years old.
