Few players strike fear into the hearts of New York Yankees pitchers: Ken Griffey Jr., Manny Ramirez, and now Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
After mashing three home runs in Yankee Stadium, the Toronto Blue Jays superstar is quickly becoming a Yankee-killer. Entering the 2022 season, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. already had a renowned presence against the New York Yankees. The slugger had swatted 11 homers through 50 games en-route to a .547 slugging percentage against the Yanks.
Wednesday night was a special game for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. against the New York Yankees
On a fateful night in April, Guerrero announced himself, starting with a towering blast to centerfield off of New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole. The ball was nearly robbed by the centerfielder but ricocheted off of an object in Monument Park and reentered the outfield.
The ball was initially ruled a double, but it was overturned upon replay. The 2021 AL MVP runner-up wasn't done. He slugged a towering shot to left centerfield in the third inning, depositing a two-run dinger into the bullpen for his second homer off Cole.
However, the face of the Toronto Blue Jays wasn't done just yet. With a one-run lead in the eighth inning, the young slugger wasted no time providing an insurance run. The slugger pulled the first pitch of the at-bat to the second deck of Yankee Stadium.
The last three-homerun game against the New York Yankees came courtesy of New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor last season. The switch-hitting shortstop led the Mets over their crosstown rivals.
The Yankees will be seeing a lot more of Guerrero Jr. The young ballplayer is on track to fill the shoes of noted Yankee killer Ken Griffey Jr. In 130 games, the Seattle Mariners Hall of Famer clubbed 36 home runs and 102 runs batted in en route to a .595 slugging percentage.
In less than half the games, Guerrero Jr. has already slugged 14 homers and produced a slugging percentage approaching .600. New York managed to avoid Griffey Jr. as he went to the National League to finish his career. However they won't be as lucky with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. The scariest part of all? The 23-year-old appears to only be scraping the surface of his true potential.