Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been removed from the Toronto Blue Jays lineup with back tightness ahead of Tuesday’s game against the New York Mets.
Guerrero was originally scheduled to bat third and play first base.
Sean Keys will start at first base for the Blue Jays. Keys was scheduled to play third in his second MLB start. Toronto’s every day third basemen Kazuma Okamoto is not in the lineup on his 30th birthday.
Ernie Clement has been moved from second to third. Luis Urias was added to the Blue Jays lineup at second.
Guerrero went 1-for-4 in Monday’s 2-1 win over the Mets. The win snapped a six-game losing streak for the Blue Jays.
Guerrero previously missed two games against the New York Yankees with back tightness. The following weekend, he was removed from a game against the Chicago Cubs for the same reason.
Guerrero is batting .268/.347/.348 in 2026 with four home runs and 34 RBIs. He slashed .198/.235/.264 in June with one home run and 10 RBIs.
Monday’s game marked the first time Bo Bichette returned to the Rogers Centre since he hit a three-run home run off of Shohei Ohtani in Game 7 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Guerrero and Bichette made their MLB debuts with the Blue Jays in 2019 after rising through the minors together.
The Blue Jays are third in the AL East with a 40-45 record. They sit 10 games back of the Tampa Bay Rays for the division lead and 2.5 games back of the Seattle Mariners for the final AL Wild Card spot.
