The ALCS has taken a surprising turn, and surely not in the way most fans expected. The Mariners have completely outplayed the Blue Jays, and they’ve done it right in Toronto’s own backyard at Rogers Center. Did you expect such an outcome? If not, then get more surprised hearing that after dropping Game 1 by a score of 3–1, the Jays were blown out 10–3 in Game 2, putting them in a tough 0–2 hole in the series.

And on both nights, Toronto’s offense went quiet, the bullpen fell apart, and a handful of bad breaks made things worse. If you remember, the Jays handled the Yankees with ease thanks to their hot bats. But that spark has vanished so far in the ALCS. And according to MLB insider Buster Olney, there’s one person who deserves most of the blame for this collapse.

“The reason why we gave Vladdy so much credit in the Yankees series is that it does feel like ‘as Vlad goes, so go the Blue Jays. If the big dog doesn’t hit, that’s going to be an issue. I’m sure Vladdy knows that and embraces that. I saw an interview at his [locker] and you could see it on his face – he was wearing it, the fact that they’re down 2-0 after playing in front of their home crowd.” Olney took Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as the one whose slump should be blamed.

Notably, after putting a hot streak at the batter’s box in the ALDS against the Yankees, Guerrero has suddenly gone ice-cold in the ALCS. Check his last two games against the Mariners, he’s 0-for-7 with just one walk and no RBIs. That’s a far cry from his red-hot ALDS performance, where he hit .529 with three home runs and nine RBIs over four games.

So, now, if the Blue Jays are going to claw their way back into this series, their franchise star will need to rediscover his power swing. And guess what, Guerrero himself knows it: “We need to get better offensively. For example, I had a big at-bat and couldn’t come through. That’s baseball. We need to go out there and win games.”

Remember back when Bo Bichette said that “We’ve wanted to win a World Series our entire careers.” Now, if Guerrero’s struggle continues, this dream would be difficult to convert into reality. With Wednesday’s off-day ahead, the Jays can only hope that a little rest and a mental reset will help Guerrero and the rest of the lineup get their groove back.

The Blue Jays’ bullpen is another concern

Don’t assume that rectifying the offense would work for the Jays. Courtesy of their dwindling bullpen!

Well, the Blue Jays’ bullpen has been shaky all season. That too, after adding right-handers Seranthony Dominguez and Louis Varland at the trade deadline. And despite having three full days off between the Division Series and the ALCS, manager John Schneider has leaned heavily on his relievers. He used at least four in each of the team’s six postseason games so far.

For instance, in Game 1, he pulled Kevin Gausman with two outs in the sixth. Thus, forcing him to use five arms out of the pen. Then in Game 2, rookie Trey Yesavage struggled badly and didn’t come close to a quality start. Again, leading to another bullpen carousel as six different relievers were called on to stop the bleeding.

When Varland entered with two runners on and none out, he gave up a three-run homer to Jorge Polanco. That was surely a costly mistake that turned what could’ve been a manageable inning into a full-blown disaster.

Hence, with numbers like that, even the Jays’ potent offense couldn’t save them in Game 3. If the Jays hope to turn this series around, Schneider will need to find a way to get more out of his entire pitching staff, and fast.