Vlad Guerrero Jr. Announces Home Run Derby Decision

Los Angeles will be lacking in star power during next month's Home Run Derby.

Just more than a week since Yankees slugger Aaron Judge announced that he was bypassing this season's Derby, Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has made it known that he too, will skip the event in an effort to stay healthy.

“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 earlier this week through an interpreter, as told to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.

Guerrero shared the Major League led in home runs a year ago (48) and is currently tied for tenth this season, with 18 bombs. He participated in 2019's Derby, smacking 91 total homers, but lost out on the crown to New York's Pete Alonso.

The wrist soreness is by no means a made up excuse for Guerrero - it's a very real injury that was noted earlier this season and contributed to a May slump that saw him bat just .217. Now healthy, he's batting .300 in June with nine home runs and 21 RBI.

“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," Guerrero added, per Sportsnet. "I don’t want to risk it.”

The Vlad-less Derby will be held in Dodger Stadium on July 18th.

 

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