Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to Participate in 2019 Home Run Derby
By Ryan Flores
Like father, like son.
On Friday, rookie phenom Vladimir Guerrero Jr. agreed to participate in this year's Home Run Derby in Cleveland, and the nearby stadiums are already storm-proofing their windows.
Source confirmed Vladdy Guerrero Jr. has agreed to participate at this year's #AllStarGame #HRDerby in Cleveland.
— Hazel Mae (@thehazelmae) June 21, 2019
Guerrero Jr. is still pretty fresh in the league, as he has just 45 career major league games, but has launched a cool seven homers in that time. Of course, his raw power in an exhibition extends far beyond that.
It's a high honor for Vladito, who will get to participate in the Derby just like his father did.
2019 MLB Home Run Derby: Projecting the ideal field with Josh Bell, Luke Voit and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. headlining https://t.co/htAE1CdlgD
— CBS Sports MLB (@CBSSportsMLB) June 12, 2019
Vlad Jr. is going to be one of the most fun players to watch for years to come, so it makes sense for MLB to get the entire world to watch him do his thing at the All-Star Break. He's very deserving, as he currently has an average home run distance of 427 feet, good for third in baseball, and has the second hardest-hit ball this season at 118.9 mph.
Hitters with the highest max exit velocity (according to @statcast):
— Max's Sporting Studio (@MaxSportsStudio) June 3, 2019
Giancarlo Stanton (120.6)
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (118.9)
Pete Alonso (118.3)
Gary Sanchez (118.3)
Aaron Judge (118.1)
There have been over 45,000 batted ball events (these are in the 99.9 percentile and above)! pic.twitter.com/LRlC2qboSx
Some people are believers that the Home Run Derby messes with a hitter's swing. Those people shouldn't worry about Guerrero Jr., as many times hitters come out of the break hitting even better than before. Just look at Bryce Harper in 2018.
Congrats on the honor, Vlad Jr.! Maybe you'll win just like your dad did.