Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Jays starts as 3B for the first time since 2019

When the Toronto Blue Jays announced their lineup for Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, one change immediately caught my eye.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. starts at third base.

As Sportsnet noted, Sunday will be his first start at the position since the 2019 season and his first appearance at third base since the 2022 season. He has at least some experience at the hot corner and actually played third base in the minors before moving to first base in 2020.

Toronto obviously made this move with offense in mind, as Sportsnet called it the team’s “most offensive lineup of the season,” while Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith pointed out that it meant there was “an extra hitter” in the lineup.

As a result, both Justin Turner and Daniel Vogelbach are playing, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa – who often plays third base – moved to second base for the series finale.

Although Nicholson-Smith noted that Guerrero frequently throws practice grounders at third base, the Blue Jays could still sacrifice some defense with this move.

According to FanGraphs, Guerrero is responsible for minus-two above-average defensive runs saved at first base this season after recording minus-six in the same category last year. He was also responsible for minus-three above-average defensive runs saved during 824.1 innings at third base in 2019.

Fantasy baseball players don’t worry as much about defense, however, and this could open up more positional versatility for Guerrero in the future if the Blue Jays continue to use him at third base.

This would make one of the game’s most dangerous hitters even more valuable in fantasy circles as he looks to show more power as the season progresses.

Guerrero has a batting average of .292/.390/.406 with five home runs and 25 RBI this season. He has made three consecutive All-Star appearances and has had three straight years with at least 26 home runs, including when he led the league with 48 in 2021.

More firepower would certainly help the Blue Jays in their ongoing efforts to turn around a disappointing 23-29 start with wins in four of their last five games.

The same goes for a passable defense at third base, which would give manager John Schneider more options when assembling his lineup.