Can Vladdy's Homer Spark Jays' Push?
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Why is Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s first home run at home this season a potential spark for the Blue Jays?
All right, welcome back to Blair and Barker on Sportsnet 590, the fan of Sportsnet. 707 will be the first pitch tonight as the Jays open a three-game series against the Detroit Tigers. Troy Melton on the mound for the Tigers. Jose Soriano goes for the Blue Jays. Tuesday's still listed as TBD. And Wednesday will be Max Scherzer. So, I don't know, maybe we'll get some. Thoughts from John today as to who that'll be. But for the matter at hand, we will, hopefully we can hear from John one way or another. We do know Drew Anderson is scheduled to start for the Tigers tomorrow. Troy Melton, if you're interested, has, well, I mean, he was really good initially at the gate. He scuffled a little bit in the past couple of outings.
He has a 5.70 ERA over his last four starts. His ERA through his first 14 outings of the season were 149. So, yeah. And we'll see what he brings against the Blue Jays team that scored an awful lot of runs in their past two games.
Yeah, he's got a good cutter. I mean, they're hitting a buck 89 off his cutter. Lefty's hit lots of homers off him. 11 of the 13 he's given up. Lefty's a hit. You know, he's one of them dudes, I think, trying to find his way. He's still a young guy. You know, sometimes those guys are better trying to throw it by you than locate it. I'll keep saying it. You let him, he'll throw you one you can hit and do damage on. It's just the letting him part is sometimes the thing that the Jays have issues with. But maybe this resurgence from Vladdy. Oh, boy, I'm on that camp
again. If you missed the news, the Jays have made a couple of roster moves today. Davis Schneider's up. Of course he's up. Brandon Salucci, Rudy Martin Jr. on the IL, and Ricky Tiedemann has been sent up. So there you go. Davis Schneider. I said, every time he got sent down, I said, he's going to be back. And he's back. I think he won, like, International League
Player of the Week or something like that.
There
it is. I mean, they got some lefties, I think. The Tigers got some lefties in their bullpen.
Yeah.
I don't know how much he'll play, but, hey, I mean, if you do what you do. I'm going to blame a player. I wish I was that. No, I don't blame
him. It's just that I do find it.
I mean, in the offseason, I'm sure they would like to make some adjustments to the roster and who they're going to want to call up. Am I being nice? I'm trying. I'm trying to be nice about it because I love Davis. He's a very nice person. It's not his fault. I mean, he can just go down and do what they tell him to do. You know, it's not the easiest thing not to play every day, come off and have some quality at-bats. And he's been going through it ever since that kind of month span when he first got called up. You know, he had some hits in the playoffs, which is nice.
Well, he was a fairly regular contributor to the team that went to the World Series.
Just not lately. Yeah. Not been a big leader lately, so maybe that'll change this time around.
Yeah.
There you go. Boy, I worked through that, didn't I? You
certainly did. That is. You certainly did.
I went.
Let's bring in, you did a good job.
Let's bring in
Ryan Dempster, former MLB pitcher, co-host of Intentional Talk, and an analyst with Marquee Sports Network. How you doing,
Ryan? Hey, buddy.
I'm doing great, guys. How we doing?
Oh, boy, Vladdy hit a homer. We're great. At
home, too. Hey, man. Weirdest thing I've seen in a while. Yeah. Just to not hit a home run. Kevin had it as his highlight of the weekend, just the fact that he finally hit
one at
home. It's strange. I was just expecting some sort of like, hey, by the way, this year, Vladdy's been nursing a corn rotator cuff. It kind of would make a little bit more sense, but the fact that he is not... Hit a homer at home is so strange, but maybe he's hitting his stride just in time. Boy,
I love that. Wouldn't that be something? I love that. Okay, let me... Before... Okay, go ahead. I was just going
to say, Ryan, is there such a thing in your mind in baseball as fluke? Like, that this is just... That's a good question. This season is just a fluke. No explanation, whatever.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
Why is Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s first home run at home this season a potential spark for the Blue Jays?
0:05–6:27
2
Is Vladdy’s recent power surge a fluke or the start of a new trend?
6:27–13:07
3
What makes José Soriano’s sinker so effective and can a sinker‑type pitcher develop a swing‑and‑miss pitch?
13:07–18:42
4
How do non‑arm injuries (like Trey Savage’s knee) affect a pitcher’s comeback timeline?
18:42–25:34
5
What insights does former MLB outfielder Andy Dirks bring to the Blue Jays‑Tigers series?
25:34–32:02
6
Can Kevin McGonigal’s rookie‑year consistency keep the Jays in the playoff hunt?
32:02–37:55
7
How do the Cubs’ pitching staff and bullpen depth stack up for a deep postseason run?
37:55–44:23
8
What are the key takeaways and outlook for the Blue Jays and Tigers as the season heads into its final stretch?
44:23–49:07
Speakers
6 identifiedMore from Blair & Barker
The First Home Run at Home + Brewers' Best Chance
Final Stretch: Expectations for Vlad Jr. with Jim Duquette & Madison Shipman
Jays DFA Sánchez + Taking on Bassitt's Orioles with John Schneider
Will Bo Bichette Stay in New York + Post-Athletics Back Leg Line!
Road Trip Reflections with Caleb Joseph
Angels' New Ownership + Barker's Former Skip Rick Sweet