Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was back at third base this week. Here’s why the Blue Jays might keep him there

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was back at his preferred position this week and how often he plays there will have a major impact on the Blue Jays’ plans for this upcoming off-season.
Guerrero made back-to-back appearances at third base on Tuesday and Wednesday. He has made eight starts there this year and that number is expected to grow substantially over the final five weeks of the season.
No, the Jays aren’t on the verge of naming Guerrero as their new starting third baseman. He’s still going to get a lot of time at first base in the coming weeks, but a more permanent transition hasn’t been ruled out.
First things first, though, the club needs to make sure Guerrero can handle it.
“I’m going to be available to play third base and first base,” Guerrero told the Star through interpreter Hector Lebron. “Whatever the front office decides, it’s not under my control. If they want me to play third, I’ll give 100 per cent to help my team win, but it’s not under my control.”
It has been more than four years since the Jays moved Guerrero off third and sent him across the diamond. At the time, the future AL MVP candidate was coming off a season in which he registered -20 outs above average, last in the majors.
A lack of athleticism and questionable footwork turned Guerrero into a defensive liability. He had the arm for the position and occasionally made highlight-reel grabs, but he frequently struggled with routine plays. He led the team with 17 errors. When the Jays convened for a mini-camp prior to the COVID-19-abbreviated 2020 season, they made the switch.
A lot has changed since then. Guerrero is in much better shape than he was in 2020 and he has proven more reliable with the glove while playing at first. Equally relevant, much of the talent that once surrounded Guerrero is gone and the Jays might need to get creative in their efforts to upgrade the roster.
General manager Ross Akins failed in his attempt to secure an impact bat at third base last off-season. He instead found a temporary solution by signing Isiah Kiner-Falefa to a two-year deal before trading him to the Pittsburgh Pirates late last month.
This year’s crop of free-agent third basemen is stronger than last winter, but not by much. Houston’s Alex Bregman headlines a list that could also include Matt Chapman. After that, the talent dries up quickly with Eugenio Suarez, Gio Urshela and J.D. Davis among the options.
If the Jays can avoid that market by moving Guerrero to third, it would increase their options to upgrade the roster. Pete Alonso, Christian Walker, Paul Goldschmidt and Rhys Hoskins are among those who could be available at first base, a position that’s typically easier to fill with a quality bat.
“It’s not a decision that I make, it’s not under my control,” the easygoing Guerrero said. “I’m the kind of player, when I see the lineup, if I’m at third, good. If I’m at first, good. I will do the best that I can to help my team win at either position.”
The Jays intend on using the final month to determine whether moving Guerrero to third is feasible. Manager John Schneider wants to use Guerrero there in back-to-back games because he believes that strategy will allow his star to get more comfortable.
The Jays would prefer to keep Guerrero at one spot next year so he knows what to expect and can plan accordingly. The current back-and-forth should be temporary.
”(It’s a) topic for the off-season,” Schneider said, “but I think the ideal would be to have first or third be a fairly consistent spot and then we can work around that.”
Desperate times call for desperate measures. If the Jays were living up to expectations and contending for the playoffs, there’s no way they would be experimenting with moving their top hitter around the diamond.
But the Jays haven’t been a good team all year and there are legitimate questions about the front office’s ability to fix everything this off-season. Moving Guerrero to third would be one way to increase their chances of adding a power bat this winter.
That means Guerrero may end up getting what he always wanted. The 25-year-old was never fully on board with the idea of switching to first base, but he handled it like a pro, won a gold glove and now might be primed to take back what was once his.
Before that happens, Guerrero still has to prove himself at third. He doesn’t need to possess an elite glove but he has to make the routine plays. If he passes the test, the Jays front office will have some flexibility when upgrading the roster in the off-season.