Blue Jays GM: Vlad Jr. has 'been awesome' despite slump

Top prospect Vlad Guerrero Jr. hasn't contributed much 10 games into his major-league career for the Toronto Blue Jays, but the organization isn't worried about the 20-year-old's poor start.

"He’s been awesome," Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins told Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun on Thursday. "Every at-bat he does something that makes me extremely confident, gives me a great deal of confidence that he’s going to be very successful."

Since his much-hyped debut, Guerrero has produced just six hits while striking out 11 times, and he owns a .162/.244/.189 slash line with one extra-base hit and no home runs.

That production is far below his minor-league totals. The slugger authored an incredible .331/.413/.531 line with 44 homers and 209 RBIs over four seasons across multiple levels.

However, Atkins isn't just looking at Guerrero's numbers. He's been impressed with the youngster's approach at the plate.

"The thing about it is he clearly is looking for pitches he can drive,” the GM said. "He sees the ball early … And for someone his age, it seems remarkable to me that he is seeing the ball as well as he is and that he’s on time and ready to hit for every pitch and every at-bat."

Atkins added that Guerrero is fitting nicely into Toronto's clubhouse, and the executive believes the easy transition will help him be successful on the field.

"He has lots of support and he’s using it," he said.