Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. predicted to win end-of-season MLB award he deserves

The 2026 season for Toronto Blue Jays' first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been a massive disappointment. He hasn't hit a home run in Toronto all season long, and his overall production at the plate has been severely underwhelming.

But he made the American League All-Star team thanks to Blue Jays fans voting him in, and he might even be headed towards an end-of-season award. Unlike his All-Star bid, this award is one he actually deserves.

MLB.com's Jason Foster, Brian Murphy and Jared Greenspan are predicting that Guerrero will end up winning the AL Gold Glove award as the league's best defensive first baseman.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. predicted to win AL Gold Glove award

"Guerrero, who won the Gold Glove here in 2022, remains a strong defender at first base," the MLB.com trio write. "He leads all AL first basemen with eight Defensive Runs Saved and a plus-6 Fielding Run Value. Meanwhile, his four Outs Above Average rank second among his AL positional peers."

Even though Guerrero has had a nightmare season from the plate, his defense hasn't suffered because of it. He's actually been a good defensive first baseman this year.

Guerrero's plus-six Fielding Run Value is first among all AL first basemen, tied with New York Yankees platoon infielder Paul Goldschmidt and Los Angeles Angels starter Nolan Schanuel, according to Baseball Savant.

Matt Olson of the Atlanta Braves is the best defensive first baseman in baseball, with his plus-eight Fielding Run Value being a step ahead of the rest of the competition.

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So, while Guerrero's 2026 season has been quite the nightmare, he's still predicted to win an end-of-season award that he actually deserves.

Even though the Blue Jays and Guerrero would trade better offensive production for worse defensive value, he at least has been a positive contributor in one phase of the game.

It's not the most important, nor the most exciting, but his good defense at first base does at least make him somewhat valuable to the Blue Jays this season despite some poor offensive numbers.

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