Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homers for first time this season as Jays earn series win over Braves

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The top of the Blue Jays order is beginning to produce as advertised as the team finds itself among the top teams in the American League.

It’s been quite the ride for a team whose fan base had such low expectations going into the season — from the low of Jose Berrios’ homer-filled opening-day start against the Orioles to the high of Wednesday afternoon when Vlad Guerrero Jr. went deep for the first time this season as the Jays beat the visiting Atlanta Braves 3-1.

The afternoon gathering at the Rogers Centre attracted a throng of school-aged kids who provided some much-needed energy.

With the Jays up 1-0 in the sixth inning, Guerrero sent a towering blast into the second deck in left field off Braves starter Spencer Strider. It measured 412 feet.

When Jays manager John Schneider held court following the win, he was asked, predictably, about Guerrero’s dinger and the reaction the team’s star player received in the dugout.

“It’s about time,’’ quipped Schneider.

The Jays took two of three against the struggling Braves to improve to 11-8 and remain tied with the New York Yankees atop the AL East which, rather surprisingly, has not been good through the season’s first few weeks.

The top of the Toronto order ­— Bo Bichette, followed by Vladdy and Anthony Santander — did what it’s supposed to in this game, combining for five of the team’s six hits in the series finale.

Bichette, whose two hits went for doubles, scored the game’s first run on an RBI single by Guerrero in the third inning.

Of the three, only Bichette has yet to go yard. Santander, the big free-agent bat the Jays acquired this off-season, hit his first long ball in his former baseball home at Baltimore on Saturday, then connected for his second, also against the O’s on Tuesday back at the Rogers Centre.

Like Vladdy, it appears only a matter of time for Bichette, at least based on his career-best 53% hard-hit rate early this season.

For most of the first few weeks, the bottom of the order has come up big, a collection of players whose roles are best suited for part-time duty. Alan Roden has emerged as one of the biggest surprises with Myles Straw a close second.

The order, meanwhile, isn’t exactly set in stone, but as long as the top of the lineup continues to produced as it has the past two games, any deficiency can be minimized.

Bichette, for one, does not profile as a leadoff hitter.

Andres Gimenez, for another, does not profile to hit cleanup. Expectations may have been raised when he went deep three times in the five games to begin the season, but even in the moment it seemed unrealistic. A drop in the order is now in order.
Finding that bat to hit in the No. 4 hole will prove elusive because the Jays, simply put, don’t have anyone on the roster capable of filling that role.

In an ideal world, Bichette would hit second followed by Guerrero with Santander in the cleanup spot.
The George Springer of a few years ago would be the ideal candidate to reclaim that role.

In fairness, he has experienced a rebirth so far in 2025 — batting .375 with two homers, 10 RBIs and two steals — even though no one is sure of its sustainability.

The Jays, who will be off on Thursday, have played six series, a stretch that included a home series sweep of Washington followed by a sweep in New York against the Mets.

Following Wednesday’s victory, Toronto’s seventh in 10 home games, no team in the AL has won more games than the Jays, pending results of the evening’s action.

While it is early, at the same time it’s hard to overlook Toronto’s 11-8 record, which has been built on excellent starting pitching.

The Jays may not be a first-place team in the weeks to follow, but they have become entertaining to watch, on most nights, and worth following.

And only time will tell if the Jays’ current pace is sustainable.

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BASSITT BRILLIANT

When it comes to pitching, Chris Bassitt provided the latest example of the depth and quality of Toronto’s starters. He threw five shutout innings and struck out a season-high 10 against the Braves in lowering his ERA to a stellar 0.77, the best in the majors heading into the evening’s schedule.

In addition, the 19 combined strikeouts by Toronto’s five pitchers on Wednesday set a franchise record in a nine-inning game.

Jeff Hoffman earned his fourth save, despite giving up a ninth-inning solo homer to rookie catcher Drake Baldwin.

BRAVES NOT SO MUCH

That cloud of doubt, uncertainty and fear to emerge from opening day has quietly disappeared. The Jays are not as bad as many first feared.

And perhaps the Braves are not as good many expected.

The Braves are a team in transition as they try to find ways to overcome suspensions and injury, a big reason why they began the season with seven straight losses and currently sit with an ugly 5-13 record.

Atlanta is considered a heavyweight in the National League, residing in a division that also features the Phillies and Mets.

Only time will tell if the Braves will officially return to the ranks of contenders, but in baseball there is always time when the calendar has yet to flip to May.

Strider, 26, hadn’t pitched in just over a year after undergoing internal brace surgery on his UCL early last season. In his return, the righty threw 97 pitches while yielding five hits and striking out five.

SCHERZER WATCH

The Jays have been the beneficiaries of high-end pitching, a starting group that continues to wait for encouraging news on the status of Max Scherzer (thumb).

The veteran threw the past two days and was scheduled to visit with a doctor Wednesday, but it’s not with the same hand specialist Scherzer first met following his injury, which occurred in his Jays debut when he pitched only three innings.