David Ortiz doesn’t think Toronto Blue Jays fans should be worrying one bit about Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
In an interview on the Blair & Barker podcast on Friday, the former Boston Red Sox slugger expressed plenty of optimism about his fellow Dominican.
“Let me tell you what’s going to happen for the upcoming season,” Ortiz said. “He’s going to learn what was his downside of this season and I will bet with anyone he’s going to have a monster season next year.
“That’s how it goes with guys, especially at his age. This kid, I’ve had so many conversations with him, and all he wants to do is learn how to put himself together and take things to the next level.”
Ortiz also was quick to point out Guerrero’s 2022 really wasn’t all that bad — the 24-year-old hit .264 with 26 homers and 94 RBIs while playing 156 games and making his third consecutive all-star game appearance. The numbers were down from his previous two years.
“When we talk about Vladdy Jr., the first thing they’re going to think of is a guy that goes out there to play every day,” Ortiz said. “That is hard to get in today’s game.”
Ortiz said because expectations are so high for Guerrero, it’s easy to get caught up in anything negative about his game.
“Sometimes as a player, you set up standards that once you come up (short) of the standards, people right away think of in a negative type of way of the way you should be,” he said.