Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. put up a career-worst season. He hit .260 with nine home runs and 57 RBIs in 144 games in 2026.
Guerrero has built a varied offseason plan to get back in form. He underwent laser eye surgery soon after the season ended.
Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero Sr. said last month he will work more closely with his son on hitting. Guerrero’s uncle, former major leaguer Wilton Guerrero, will also help.
Now another name has joined that group.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Announces Career News
Guerrero is training with Junior Rodríguez, a Dominican Republic-based trainer who guided him through his 2020-21 offseason. The 27-year-old has posted photos of their sessions on Instagram.
Guerrero first reached out to Rodríguez in late September 2020.
A la izquierda, Guerrero Jr. trabajando con Junior Rodríguez en 2020, antes de firmar la mejor temporada de su carrera.
A la derecha, seis años después, regresa al mismo lugar y junto a la misma persona que lo ayudó a sacar su
Rodríguez said the main goal that winter was weight loss. The program also covered strength, power, flexibility, conditioning and stretching.
Sessions that winter lasted 90 minutes, four times a week, in the gym at Guerrero’s home.
Rodríguez revealed that limited range of motion in Guerrero’s torso sapped his power.
Guerrero then produced the best season of his career. He hit .311 with 48 home runs, 111 RBIs and a 1.002 OPS in 2021.
The plan resembles the one Paul Goldschmidt followed after his own down year. He hit .260 for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2019, the same average Guerrero posted this year.
Goldschmidt worked on his swing with Cardinals hitting coach Jeff Albert.
Goldschmidt bounced back, hitting .304 in the shortened 2020 season and .294 with 31 home runs in 2021.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Will Swing in a Home Run Derby in Azua
Guerrero will test his bat next month. He is scheduled to take part in a home run derby Sunday, Dec. 13, in Azua, Dominican Republic.
The event, called Juego de los Profesionales, begins at 9 a.m. at Estadio Américo Hernández.
The Azua event gives Guerrero a public setting to swing after a season with only nine home runs. He enters 2027 in the second season of his 14-year, $500 million contract, which runs through 2039.
Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Announces Career News Amid MLB Offseason