Welcome to a new series we're starting here at WhoReps, where we profile an up-and-coming talent in sports you just might not have heard of yet. We start with Blue Jays prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr.. Enjoy!

For better or for worse, we are all our parents' children. For some of us, that means a Hall of Famer has groomed us for baseball greatness since birth. Others aren't so lucky. In Fathers and Sons, the epic Russian novel from Ivan Turgenev, the nihilist Bazarov proclaims that "I only look to the heavens when I want to sneeze." But Bazarov never got to see Toronto Blue Jays' prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. launch a fastball high into the night. Soon, all of Major League Baseball will get the chance.
 
It's been nearly 80 years since Ted Williams hit .406 for the Boston Red Sox, the last major leaguer to cross the .400 barrier. Few have threatened it. In the minor leagues, where the competition isn't so stiff, just two men have managed it over a full season in the modern era. The last to do it was Erubial Durazo, a first baseman who hit .404 in 1999 in a season split between AA and AAA for the Diamondbacks. Before him you have to go back to 1961, when an outfielder named Aaron Pointer hit .401 for the Astros' AAA team. And that's it. Ironically, neither man went on to a particularly distinguished career in the majors, with Durazo's six seasons outlasting Pointer's three. But we are inches away from adding another name to the list.

Guerrero Jr., a 19 year old third baseman and the son of great Expo/Angel Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, has hit .406 this season split at AA and AAA. Often facing grown men many years his senior, the towering phenom is more than thriving — he's the best in the league. He hits not just for average but for power as well, with the hulking youngster known to hit balls completely out of minor league stadiums. The only thing keeping him down in the minors is baseball's arcane contract system, which would see Toronto gain an additional year of team control if they wait to call him up until a few weeks into next season. But the question isn't if he's ready for the bigs. It's if the bigs are ready for him.

The elder Guerrero, who grew up on a farm in the Dominican Republic, was famous for his ability to hit balls nowhere near the strike zone, as well as his total eschewance of batting gloves. It was not uncommon to see a barehanded Guerrero smack a pitch that had bounced in front of the plate out for a hit, or even a homer. It was in Montreal where he blossomed into a star for the Expos, making the first four of his nine All-Star teams, and the first three of his eight Silver Sluggers. And it was in Montreal where his son was born, where Junior says his fondest memory is of the ice cream machine at the old Montreal stadium. With the Expos since having ceased to exist, it may be up to their Canadian countrymen in Toronto to give him all the ice cream his heart desires.

While his father rode an unconventional approach at the plate all the way into Cooperstown, Guerrero the Younger — who does see the value of the batting glove — represents the ideal marriage of immense physical talent with the best skills training and development money can buy. He was ranked as the top international prospect as soon as he turned 16, signing for close to $4 million at an age when most kids are just worried about passing their drivers test. All he's done since is make that look like a bargain for the Blue Jays, smashing through the minors with lightning speed and landing on the doorstep of the big league club.

The all-time MLB record for career home runs by a player born in Quebec is just 98, held by an infielder with the White Sox in the '60s by the name of Pete Ward. The only concern is whether that record will be Guerrero's by his third season, or by his fourth. It's not often a player comes around where greatness seems this preordained, right down to the name on the birth certificate. But while we sit in the mud, some reach for the stars. 

Thanks for tuning in!