Associated Press
Vladimir Guerrero, shown with the Los Angeles Angels, will play with the Las Vegas 51s at Cashman Field starting Saturday against the Reno Aces. He signed a free agent contract May 10 with the Toronto Blue Jays â€" the 51s’ parent club.
Friday, June 1, 2012 | 11:42 a.m.
Big league veteran Vladimir Guerrero, with his swing-at-everything batting approach, will join the Las Vegas 51s at 7 p.m. Saturday for the start of a four-game series at Cashman Field against the visiting Reno Aces.
The 37-year-old Guerrero, a nine-time all-star whose helmet is typically covered in pine tar (his substitute for batting gloves), signed a minor league contract May 10 with the Toronto Blue Jays â€" the 51s’ parent club. He excelled during four games with Single-A Dunedin of the Florida State League in going 9-for-20 with four home runs and 8 RBIs, showing the career .318 hitter can still impact a lineup with his bat.
On Thursday, he smacked two home runs â€" a welcome sign for Toronto, which recently released slugger Adam Lind â€" and is likely to only play a few games in Triple-A Las Vegas before being added to the Blue Jays’ 25-man roster.
Last year, with the Baltimore Orioles, he batted .290 with 30 doubles, 13 home runs and 63 RBI in 145 games.
Guerrero, whose career includes stops with the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Angels, Texas Rangers and Baltimore, is 35th on the all-time career home run list with 449 home runs. He was named the American League MVP in 2004 after batting .337 with 39 home runs and 126 RBIs. From 1997 to 2008, he batted above .300 every season.
Ray Brewer can be reached at 990-2662 or ray.brewer@lasvegassun.com. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21.
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