Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts may think Shohei Ohtani can compete for a Cy Young Award, but one Toronto Blue Jays superstar isn’t convinced.
First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was interviewed by Yancen Pujols in an exclusive Spanish-language interview, and he opened up about the Jays nearly toppling the defending champs in the World Series.
“We knew we were up against the ‘dream team’ and everyone had us as massive underdogs,” Guerrero said, as reported by Aaliyan Mohammed of Newsweek. “People were already calling it, swept 1-2-3-4, done.”
Where he’s likely to raise some eyebrows, however, was his targeting of Dodgers star two-way player Shohei Ohtani, specifically for his pitching.
“But honestly? Shohei Ohtani wasn’t that tough to hit,” Guerrero said.
Guerrero even took it a step further, giving another Dodger pitcher praise while downplaying Ohtani’s performance on the mound.
“(Yoshinobu) Yamamoto was [difficult to hit],” he said, per Jonathan Vankin of Heavy. “He was nasty. He was the MVP. He takes the bat out of your hands. That guy keeps the ball down at your knees and strikes everybody out.”
Guerrero Only Had One Hit off of Ohtani — But It Was Huge
Guerrero wasn’t too far off base regarding Ohtani’s performance, as the generational star wasn’t effective on the mound.
Over 8.1 innings in two World Series games, he gave up 11 hits and 7 earned runs, resulting in an ERA of 7.56. He also was the losing pitcher for Game 4 at Dodger Stadium, during which Guerrero blasted a two-run home run that gave the Jays the lead and, ultimately, the win.
Outside of that huge hit, though, Guerrero was walked once and struck out twice by Ohtani in the World Series, even as he hit .333 against all pitchers.
So does Guerrero have a point? Perhaps. But in the end, the Dodgers as a team took Games 6 and 7 to secure back-to-back World Series titles.
As the Boys in Blue seek the first three-peat in nearly three decades, Ohtani will be back on the mound and at the plate, so Guerrero and Ohtani will likely have more chances to prove who really has the edge when they face off.