After saying in the past that he’d never play for the New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is softening his stance.
Guerrero was asked Monday night if he’d reconsider past comments with the Blue Jays languishing in last place in the American League East — 16 games behind the Yankees — and the trade deadline looming July 30.
“Sometimes one says things. It is not that I am trying to take back what I said about the Yankees,” Guerrero told Virus Deportivo on Monday. “But this is a business. I sat down and spoke with my dad [Vladimir Guerrero Sr.] and my family, and this is a business. And I said I would never again talk about this topic and lots of people have asked me about it.”
In 2022, Guerrero said he’d “never sign with the Yankees — not even dead.” In 2023, he told the New York Post that it was “a personal thing that goes back with my family. … I would never change that.”
But never say never.
“Like I tell you, I’m a player and if a team picks me or if they do something, it’s because they need it, obviously, and I’ll be happy to help any team,” Guerrero Jr. told Virus Deportivo on Monday. “But right now, I’m just focused on helping my team try to get out of this bad streak.”
The Yankees are searching for a fix at first base following the injury to Anthony Rizzo, who suffered a broken right forearm and is expected to be sidelined until August. New York acquired J.D. Davis in a trade with the Oakland Athletics, and they also called up Ben Rice for the minors.
But Guerrero, 25, would be a huge addition to an offense that already boasts the likes of Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. After a slow start, Guerrero is hitting .286 with 10 home runs and 35 RBIs for the Blue Jays this season, and general manager Ross Atkins has already said that it “doesn’t make any sense” to trade Guerrero, who is under contract through the 2025 season.
Guerrero has drawn the ire of Yankees fans multiple times in the past with theatrics during his home run trot. While rounding the bases after a home run on April 7, Guerrero pointed to fans while he was between first and second base, stopped near shortstop and hopped, and — as he passed third — raised his right index finger to his lips.