Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is nothing if not confident in himself.
The Toronto Blue Jays superstar added his voice to the discourse surrounding the American League MVP race. And though Guerrero may indeed have an uphill battle against two-way star Shohei Ohtani, the 22-year-old sees himself at the head of this year's class.
"I would consider myself the MVP," he told ESPN's Marly Rivera. "But you know he's (Ohtani) obviously doing a really good job. There's (Kansas City Royals catcher) Salvador Perez too, who is also doing really well. Whatever they decide, I'll be happy, but I do consider myself the MVP."
Guerrero's jumped back into serious consideration for the award after Ohtani appeared to have it locked up. He's leading the AL in all three slash categories (.323/.413/.617) as well as home runs (46), hits (180), and runs scored (119). He's also 10 RBIs shy of the lead in all three triple crown categories.
Ohtani's unprecedented success as a full-time two-way player seems to be all that's standing in the way of Guerrero winning the award. His combined WAR of 7.3 as both a hitter and pitcher dwarfs Guerrero's (6.8) at first base.
Unlike Ohtani and the Los Angeles Angels, Guerrero's Blue Jays have a lot to play for down the stretch. His surge at the plate coincided with Toronto's red-hot September that brought the team back into playoff contention, which remains Guerrero's ultimate focus.
"Like I told you, I came here to work," he told Rivera. "If God has it planned for me, I'll take it, but I'm here to work and I'm focused on continue winning so we can make the playoffs."
