Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is not in the Toronto Blue Jays’ starting lineup for the second straight day as they take on the Chicago Cubs Thursday afternoon.
This come after Guerrero was given what manager John Schneider described as a day off in Wednesday’s series finale against the Astros in Houston.
Schneider said Wednesday that Guerrero was dealing with hamstring tightness. He appeared to be in some discomfort after attempting to leg out a ground ball in the eighth inning of Tuesday’s loss to the Astros but remained in the game at first base for the bottom half of the inning.
Schneider said after that game that Guerrero -- who had previously missed time with a hamstring injury -- is not dealing with anything “major” and described him as “tight, tired.”
Guerrero is one of several Blue Jays in the midst of a difficult 2026 campaign. He’s slashing .259/.338/.349 with six home runs and 44 RBI in 108 games played.
The Jays overcame his absence in the lineup Wednesday, defeating the Astros 5-4 in extra innings thanks to a towering two-run homer from Ernie Clement leading off the 10th.
With a Cleveland Guardians loss later in the day, Toronto (54-61) enters play Thursday just three games out of the final American League wild-card spot.
After their rainout make-up game against the Cubs Thursday, the Jays will head to Philadelphia to take on the Phillies over the weekend.
