Toronto Blue Jays Announce Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Decision During Reds Series

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KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - SEPTEMBER 4: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays celebrates a single against the Kansas City Royals during the first inning at Kauffman Stadium on September 4, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Reed Hoffmann/Getty Images)

It hasn’t been the 2026 campaign Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or the Toronto Blue Jays have hoped for by any stretch this season.

Toronto reached the World Series less than a year ago and came just inches away from winning it, but the Blue Jays will miss the postseason this year.

On Saturday, they’ll play their second-to-last game of the regular season as they come off a 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night in their series opener.

Ahead of Game 2 of the weekend set, Blue Jays manager John Schneider announced a notable lineup change involving Guerrero Jr.

Blue Jays Announce Guerrero Jr. Decision

After starting at first base on Friday and recording one hit and an RBI, Guerrero Jr. is back in the lineup again but will transition to designated hitter while batting third in the order, behind Brett Bateman, who returns to the lineup, and Nathan Lukes.

Here’s the full Blue Jays lineup:

Via Underdog MLB: “Blue Jays 9/26 B. Bateman CF N. Lukes RF V. Guerrero Jr. DH A. Kirk C K. Okamoto 3B S. Keys 1B J. Smith LF A. Giménez SS E. Clement 2B T. Yesavage SP.”

Blue Jays 9/26

B. Bateman CF
N. Lukes RF
V. Guerrero Jr. DH
A. Kirk C
K. Okamoto 3B
S. Keys 1B
J. Smith LF
A. Giménez SS
E. Clement 2B

T. Yesavage SP

— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) September 26, 2026

Guerrero Jr.’s 2026 Season

While the Blue Jays star was once again named an All-Star for the sixth straight year, he simply lacked power this season.

He’s appeared in 142 games for Toronto in 2026 and, across 533 at-bats, he’s hitting .263 with 71 runs, 140 hits, nine home runs, and 56 RBIs while slugging just .360 with a .695 OPS.

Guerrero Jr. made it very clear over the last few days that he plans on living up to the massive 14-year, $500 million contract he signed in 2025 after stirring up some controversy with comments earlier in the week.

He has since apologized for saying the Blue Jays paid him for what he’s already accomplished, not what he’s going to do in the future, and has retracted those statements.