Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Takes MLB Home Run Lead at 45 as Toronto Wins Again

[Box Score]

On Monday night the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Tampa Rays 8-1 behind eight shutout innings from Alek Manoah. Teoscar Hernandez collected five hits in a career high night. Most notably, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his 45th home run of the season to take over the lead in all of baseball. Also, his father never hit that many home runs in a season.

Look at the hit type his bat produced there, that thing never got 15 feet off the ground, a pure line drive over the wall.

It was the Blue Jays’ 81st win of the season. They’re gridlocked in a three-way tie for the wildcard with the Yankees and Red Sox, so something has to give here.

Finally, Guerrero Jr.’s end of the season push has been strong. However if he’s going to win the American League Triple Crown and push the Blue Jays into the playoffs, he’s going to need to reach way down deep inside for something special to hold off the hyenas. You can just tell at this point. All of this is coming down to the wire.