Is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. the best prospect in baseball?

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Since his incursion into the Minor leagues, the Dominican baseball player has exceeded all expectations and many already consider him the best rookie of the circuit

After what was shown in the 2018 Minor League season by the Venezuelan Ronald Acuña Jr. and the Japanese Shohei Ohtani, no one imagined that a new Latin American superstar would generate as much expectation as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has done. Thanks to his dexterity in the offensive aspect, he is considered the number one prospect of MLB Pipeline's list of 100 players.

Leer en español: ¿Es Vladimir Guerrero Jr. el mejor prospecto del béisbol?

The one born in Quisqueya left a pleasant impression in the previous campaign of Minor Leagues when leading the batting department with .381, accompanied by a slugging of .636 and a brilliant OPS of 1,120, statistics that immediately gave him a promotion to Triple-A and with only 19 years of age, according to the MLB website. Countless specialists from the Arizona Fall League have been questioned about how true it can be that Guerrero is the best prospect today and if he really is ready to face the best big league hands.

The certain thing is that the opinion of the experts in the matter does not go so hand in hand with the mentioned list, since it does not possess a sufficiently complete profile from all the aspects to consider it like the best prospect. This opinion is based mainly on its deficiencies in defense and at the time of running the bases, contrary to the offensive aspect it promises in the face of its future.

For the specialists, when compared with the superstar Alex Rodriguez, number one of the Amateur Draft in 1993, we have that when he was only 18 years old, he made his debut in the Grand Tent with the Seattle Mariners as a whole, in which he left a batting record of .258 slugging of .414 and OPS of 636. He also completed 36 home runs and 5 stolen bases, which was enough to obtain the MVP distinction (Most Valuable Player) of the American League, according to the El Nacional web portal.

For his part, by signing a contract for the sum of 3.9 million dollars as the best international free agent in 2015, Guerrero has batted .331 / .414. / 529 with 146 tickets traded and 135 strikeouts as a professional. These numbers are similar to those of his compatriot Rodriguez, but with the difference that he made them in Minor Leagues and at the same age of 19 years .328 / .387 / .603, with 60 bases on balls and 126 fans, but also stole 329 pillows, highlighting the speed factor, according to the mentioned portal.

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"A-Rod was the best, I can not put Guerrero over him, Rodriguez managed all that as a shortstop, he did everything with ease, his tools were in the sky, Vlad's attraction is his bat, but if you ask me who he is the best slugger I would say that Guerrero, I am quite impressed," said a senior manager of a National League club.

Also, a special assistant of the best baseball in the world indicated that Guerrero does not have the five tools at the level of Alex Rodriguez, Mike Trout, or Ken Griffey Jr., but his offensive potential is dazzling and has every attribute that is sought in a slugger : speed at batting, swing without weak points, strength, good coordination and advanced with the recognition of shipments, ready to hit the wings and able to fly the fence at any stadium, the only thing that would make him perfect would be if he were left-handed.

" He does not have the physique of Rodriguez, Griffey, and Trout, but if the odds of reaching a .300 average with 30 home runs, he has innate abilities and instincts, he can punish every pitch he sees," an American League executive said.

Off and injured in the Spring Training

Everything seemed great for the Dominican belonging to the Toronto Blue Jays, but his weak start in Spring Training, with an average of only .211 batting without home runs and with just one run, coupled with his last-hour injury, has concerned the organization. According to the review by Al Bat, Guerrero is currently weighing 113 kilograms unlike the 90 he had when he signed the contract, a factor that could be influencing his performance in some way.

In addition, the excess of confidence and aggressiveness in his swing generated the first-degree lesion in his left oblique muscle, according to the information provided by Shi Davidi, and will keep him three weeks away from the playfield. Charlie Montoya, Toronto manager, said: "It sucks, you do not want anyone to get injured and lose turns in training, but he's a young man and the problem is not as serious as we thought, it's three weeks, he'll be fine."

LatinAmerican Post | Rubén Sanchez

Translated from "¿Es Vladimir Guerrero Jr. el mejor prospecto del beisbol?"