"That's crazy" - Daniel Cormier finds unique link between Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and legends Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. recently garnered high praise from former UFC double-champion Daniel Cormier. According to Cormier, coming out of the shadow of a father with great athletic achievements is difficult. However, Guerrero is among the rare few who did it.

Cormier is now a UFC commentator after retiring from the sport following his unsuccessful title bid against Stipe Miocic at UFC 252 in August 2020.

"So for the dad, for Ken Griffey Jr. and Barry (Bonds), their dads were good," Cormier said on Tuesday (3:13), via "Club Shay Shay." "They weren't them. So the second one was better."

Cormier added that asking the offspring of Griffey or Bonds to be better than them in MLB would be a tough ask. In this scenario, Cormier found Guerrero to be exceptional.

"It's like Vladimir Guerrero," Cormier said (3:30). He was really good, but his son now is (great) with the same name. With the same name, better than his dad. That's crazy. So for him to have another one that does that will be very hard."

Guerrero's father was an MVP and is a Hall of Famer, and the Blue Jays star has not reached his level. However, the pathway is there and the team sees him as its cornerstone, signing him to $500,000,000 contract extension last offseason.

On the contrary, Griffey and Bonds outperformed their parents. Although his father won two World Series, Griffey's individual accomplishments are far greater. It's the same case for Bonds.

MLB insider sees Blue Jays as an embodiment of Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The Toronto Blue Jays sit atop the American League East division. No Blue Jays slugger has hit more than 25 homers, but have been great collectively. Four sluggers, including Vladimir Guerrero Jr., are batting close to .300. Additionally, their rotation received a big boost with Shane Bieber's arrival.

For MLB insider Buster Olney, there is a parallel between Guerrero's playing and Toronto's.

"Here's the other thing about Toronto that I really like: highest on-base percentage in baseball," Olney said on Wednesday, via "Baseball Isn't Boring." "They put the ball in play. They have the lowest strikeout percentage. They kind of are an embodiment of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Not gaudy power numbers, but their offense against good teams is functional."

Olney also shared that the Houston Astros teams from the late 2010s are similar to this year's Blue Jays. The Astros didn't strike out much, and it translated well in the postseason, reaching the ALCS for seven consecutive years from 2017 to 2023.