Vlad Jr hit a ridiculous home run
The strike zone is only conceptual if you really think about it
Before Sunday, eight right-handed batters hit far-inside fastballs as hard as Vlad Guerrero Jr hit the one Kelvin Herrera tossed his way in the eighth inning of a tie game.
Three of those hard hit balls went over the fence. Paul Goldschmidt hit one, Manny Machado hit one (his first as a Padre), while Brian Anderson of the Marlins hit the other. Not one of those balls travelled as far as the one below, which was hit by Vladimir Guerrero Jr and introduces this week’s chapter of “Vlad Jr isn’t normal.”
“Vlad Jr did something wild, can you believe it?” is an easy story to write. His preternatural bat speed allows him to get to pitches others cannot. His power allows him to do things to those pitches that others dare not dream. But Guerrero offers near-daily glimpses at the depth of his talent and the vastness of his potential.
To whip his hands in to reach that pitch while still, improbably, keeping it fair is a very difficult thing to accomplish. It’s the kind of home run that keeps looking better every time you watch it. That he kept rising and didn’t appear to hook at all, it’s crazy.
It’s also a very entertaining repudiation of the idea that hitters like Vlad Jr or Joey Votto “refuse” to expand their zone. No big league batter goes up to the plate looking to walk, they’re looking for a pitch to drive. Sometimes, that pitch is thrown more than six inches off the plate.
There’s a difference between recognizing you can’t do much with a well-placed pitch down and away and seeing an inside fastball that you know you can get the bat head to. That’s what plate discipline means, rather than having a 3D map of the zone in your mind at all times.
As an aside, it isn’t especially predictive or valuable in a franchise’s lost season, but Guerrero’s ability to produce good results in tight games is nothing if not reassuring. In 11 “late and close” plate appearances, Guerrero has five hits, with a double and home run, as well as a walk. That he’s able to handle top relief pitchers, seeing most of them for the first time, will help get even the most skeptical of Blue Jays watchers on-board.
The early-season creases are ironing themselves out. Pitchers are making mistakes and he’s crushing them. A favourable bounce helped ensure a good swing got a good outcome earlier this weekend. It’s all coming together, at long* last. One strong road trip and we’re dreaming big again.
*long in that it was not instantaneous. We’re spoiled!