The Home Run Derby is typically a celebration of the best sluggers in baseball, but Dodger Stadium will be without Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
The Toronto Blue Jays revealed the news after Monday’s win against the Boston Red Sox. Guerrero experienced left wrist soreness back in May, and the first baseman does not want to flare up the injury even further.
“My wrist is fine right now, but I’ve got to be careful — there are too many swings in a Home Run Derby,” Guerrero said through interpreter Hector Lebron, per SportsNet’s Shi Davidi. “I don’t want to take a chance that my wrist gets hurt again and it gets bad and I won’t be able to help the team win, which is what we’re trying to do here. I don’t want to risk it.”
Guerrero, who hit a two-run homer Monday, showed out in his rookie season in the 2019 Home Run Derby. He hit a record 91 total homers before falling one shy of champion Pete Alonso in the final round. Since then, however, he skipped last year’s derby to manage his workload. Guerrero’s wrist issues have lingered with him since the minor leagues.
“I think (the wrist) is something that I’m going to have to (manage) for the rest of my career, so I just want to make sure that I keep doing all my exercises and everything that I have to do to keep it healthy,” Guerrero said. “I told them that I wasn’t going to be able to do (the derby) because I preferred to rest and be ready for the second half to help the team win games.”
The Blue Jays’ first baseman is on a hot June stretch, batting .300/.391/.620 with 21 RBIs and 21 runs. Guerrero remains behind New York Yankees star Aaron Judge and Los Angeles Angels ace Shohei Ohtani for the American League MVP race, but Guerrero’s decision to sit out this year’s Home Run Derby shows he is committed to take Toronto to the levels it expected before the season began.
