Vladimir Guerrero Jr. day-to-day as knee inflammation isn't serious

TORONTO — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. made Blue Jays fans’ hearts skip a beat Saturday by leaving the game with a knee injury, but after getting an MRI it appears the young slugger’s ailment is a minor one.

“They got the MRI on me, there was nothing major, just a little inflammation,” he said through a translator. “I feel a lot better today."

Vladdy doesn’t have a specific timeline for his return, but his initial feeling seems to be that he’s going to be missing a couple of games as opposed to hitting the IL.

"I like to go out there healthy, fully healthy, and play hard. It wasn't the case yesterday,” he said. “So I decided I would take one or two days."

[Join or create a 2019 Yahoo Fantasy Football league for free today]

“We’ll go day-to-day,” added manager Charlie Montoyo. “We’ll see how he feels Tuesday.”

That’s particularly good news for the Blue Jays and Guerrero Jr. because the slugger suffered a pretty major knee injury last season. In June of 2018 he strained a patellar ligament in his left knee which sidelined him more than a month. In Guerrero Jr.’s view, the injuries aren’t comparable.

“It was totally different from last year. I wouldn’t be standing here if it was like the one last year,” he said. “I couldn’t even walk last year pretty much.”

For now, the Blue Jays will just have to wait and see with Vladdy, but it seems unlikely they’ll be waiting long. Sitting at 52-74 they have every reason to be cautious, but it doesn’t appear that Guerrero Jr. will need a long layoff. When he returns it will be a good indication he’s at 100 percent, because there’s no incentive for the player or team to rush.

Every time Vladdy is unable to take the field it’s a concern - and the 20-year-old’s massive frame have raised questions about his durability in the past - but this looks more like injury scare than scary injury.

More Blue Jays coverage on Yahoo Sports