Know Your Jays: Jose Bautista

Jose Antonio Bautista. Joey Bats. Number 19. Our fearless leader. He's known by many names. You may be surprised to learn that apparently most people mispronounce his last name. According to his MLB player profile, it's pronounced 'bahhh-tista', not 'boww-tista'. Until he corrects the announcers, however, I remain unconvinced.

Does he have Twitter: He does! @JoeyBats19 His tweets are frequent, entertaining (if occasionally self-promoting) and emoji-laden. Bonus: He also has an equally-active Instagram! His hashtag game is possibly the best I've ever seen. 

Irrelevant Facts: He's one of only three remaining players from when the Jays had those black jerseys and the logo with the angry-looking bird. (The other two are Edwin Encarnacion and Brett Cecil).

The man REALLY loves his breakfast cereal.

His initials (JB) are also the team's initials (BJ) in reverse. Coincidence?? ... Yes. 

Best quote: (On the players added at the trade deadline) "It’s almost like being at war and running low on ammo, and the next thing you know, here comes a little parachute with a crate. And it lands right next to you. And it’s full of ammo. You’re like, ‘Yeah, baby,'"

(When asked if he had a response to an opposing pitcher griping about his bat-flip) "No."

What he's good at: Lots of things! Hitting things, catching things, looking very casual while doing those things... Or better yet, catching things dramatically. He's a good 8 years older than his centerfield counterpart Kevin Pillar, but is just as capable of the acrobatic catches. They're just not always necessary. But when they are, they're spectacular. (See second video) He's probably able to do those things because he stretches more than a yoga instructor.

He's also legendary for responding to bush-league moves (i.e. throwing at him) with his swing (see first video), often in the same at-bat. You don't want to make this guy angry. You won't like him when he's angry. Especially if you're a member of the Baltimore Orioles.

He's been the face of the franchise for several years now, and the face of some other things, including Booster Juice and TD Canada Trust Bank, for some reason.

He's also crazy smart. He wrote this amazing article about the importance of education for international baseball prospects. He's from the Dominican Republic (but you probably already knew that) and has a foundation to provide opportunities for amateur ballplayers to get a higher education. Good guy.
  
What he's not so good at: Keeping quiet. Which is actually a good thing. Sometimes you need to stand up for yourself, or a teammate, even when everyone's saying you should just shut up. When Joey Bats sees that something is wrong, he points it out, and he doesn't let anyone sweep it under the rug. When an asshat of a radio sports commentator implied that baseball players in general and Dominicans in particular weren't smart, Bautista responded to him on Twitter in a manner that actually seemed fairly calm (judging solely by the lack of caps lock and exclamation points).

Dear Mr. @ESPN_Colin before i rip you a new one i would like for you to explain what u meant to say about baseball and dominicans, please

— Jose Bautista (@JoeyBats19) July 23, 2015

Who among us wouldn't have let loose a few curse words at a guy insinuating our entire country is lacking in intelligence? Remarkable restraint, and for a man reputed to be a 'hothead', no less. He even included the sarcastic 'please' at the end.

Another thing would be knowing his 'limits'. I would like to say the man HAS no limits (certainly the field has no limits as far as his bat is concerned) but there was that one time he got pissed off at the Orioles and overthrew on a play, and hurt his arm. Apparently it got to the point where he couldn't raise his arm to comb his hair, and this led to him having to DH for a while, which in turn led to the circus that was our outfield. But we'll forgive him for that, Because he's Bautista. And his rage was justified. At least it didn't hurt the team much in the long run. 

Why I love him: Because of all the things he's good at! He mashes, he catches, he dances, he bat-flips, and he speaks up about things that no one else will. Really just a badass in general. And he has a soft spot for kids, and a sense of humour, as evidenced by his goofy selfies on his Instagram and his frequent use of the 'crying from laughter' emoji.

He also follows pretty much everyone in Canada on Twitter (including both of my accounts, teehee), which has become somewhat of a running joke in the Blue Jays Twitterverse. Also a running joke? The Bautista quote 'Who are you and why are you talking to me?', which came about in response to a reporter claiming to know what Jose was thinking last year at the trade deadline. He's the stuff of legends, a giant brushing an inconsequential fly off his shoulder. A fly that didn't need to be addressed, to begin with, but for some reason I have this mental image of him sitting behind his computer after crafting these cool-toned takedowns and just giggling.

I love how he can go from intense and focused, to exuberantly proud (of himself or a teammate) to calm and calculating and back again in a second. Even when he appears to be at his most relaxed, you can always tell he's thinking, observing and strategizing. No one can tell you he isn't smart. Sometimes the smartest people are the ones who don't feel the need to inform everyone of just how smart they are. There's something in his eyes that gives it away. That, and a slight sense of mischief.

"I'm gonna hit a home run against them later."

As for the thing about him being a hothead - many people have pointed out this might be a little bit of a racist criticism, especially since Josh Donaldson has done similar stuff (and worse) and been called much fewer names over it. That may be true. My dad also pointed out that Jose has had a temper with unfair calls and such for several years, and maybe people are just getting tired of it. But even compared to the stories of past seasons, he's seemed to have cooled off a fair bit as of late. The only times I've seen him really lose his temper was on a lousy strike call. And you can say here that he's disrespecting the umpires, or whatever. But he's one of the best judges of strikes and balls in the league. As Arden Zwelling once famously said - "When Jose Bautista says the pitch is a ball, its a f***ing ball." He has an amazing eye.  He gets mad because he wants to be given a fair chance, and if the umpire were judging the game accurately, there'd be no need for him to be angry. Bryce Harper is another player noted for doing this - but no one, save for Gregg Zaun, seems to think he's hot-headed.
Baiting, especially from the other team, is met with cool indifference (like "I could care less what Adam Jones is saying."). Or this lovely gesture, also directed at the O's:

"Don't talk to me." A wave of dismissal more suited to an Elizabethan lady. That's how above all of this Jose is. Considering all the grief that team has given him, all the near-misses he's suffered at the hands of their pitchers, he could have a lot more to say to them at that moment. But he refuses to sink to their level, and that makes me really proud.
He also chose not to berate an ignorant Jays fan who interfered with a fair ball (unlike the Yankees' Mark Teixiera, who fell into the stands trying to catch a foul one later that same week). He gave said fan an icy glare, but didn't say anything. It was a look that could kill, for sure, but wouldn't a hothead likely choose to engage in a screaming match?

He's a leader, and I really mean this, despite him becoming kind of overlooked in that role in the 2015 season. There was that time he wouldn't let starting pitcher Matt Boyd (making his big-league debut) get his own water after his first inning.

There was that other time he chose to sit out the glory and excitement of the All-Star Game & Home Run Derby because he was afraid it would cause further injury to his irritated arm, and end up costing his team later on. He put the success of the team before personal recognition, even though it was the first time he missed the ASG in 6 consecutive seasons.

There was another time when he stood up for teammate Devon Travis when he felt the rookie was being taken advantage of - read about Suitgate over here

And then there were the countless times this year I've noticed him be the first one to step between an angry teammate and an umpire/opposing player, try to calm the other guy down, and avoid an argument or, even worse, an ejection. More often than not, this teammate is Josh Donaldson, and while I'm definitely not saying Donaldson is wrong to be angry, he does the team more good in the lineup than in the clubhouse, and Jose knows this. Which is probably why he steps in, having been there numerous times himself. The point can also be made that since he bats third to Donaldson's second, he just so happens to be the nearest person since he's on-deck at the time. But he could just as easily stay put and wait for Gibby to do something about it. Attempting to de-escalate a situation like that goes a long way in terms of showing leadership. As much as I can enjoy the drama created by a mid-game argument, I love the guys who keep the peace even more. And for that, he earns my respect.

2015 Season Highlights: Well, he's hit a lot of home runs. Including the 250th of his career, as well as his 200th as a Blue Jay. He and Josh Donaldson also are tied for first on the list of MLB teammates who homer in the same game (7 times as of August 12th). He slid comfortably into second place on the list of all-time home runs as a Jay, prompting legend Vernon Wells to tweet this, when Bautista tied him:

Joined now by @JoeyBats19 on the @BlueJays HR list. Welcome bud! Pass me tomorrow! #GoJaysGo

— Vernon Wells (@VernonWells10) July 22, 2015

Have I mentioned he hits a lot of homers? One (or two, or four) of the most enjoyable ones were when he glared down the Orioles, or the time he hit a homer and yelled 'f*** yeah, bitch' in slow-motion at the Orioles bench as he ran to first, or hit one against the Royals in that game where they rattled JD so much with beanballs that he couldn't hit one himself. And then there was the one where he hit one in extra innings in New York to end a 1-1 10-inning game. (Also happened to be the first Jay since Gregg Zaun to do so against the Yankees. Pretty cool.) 

Then, on September 22nd against the Yankees, after struggling with his arm all season, he unleashed not one, but TWO cannon-like throws which nailed out the runners and kept the Jays in the game. They ended up losing in extra innings, but after this magnificent display we all kind of looked at each other and knew - he was back.

Off-field antics: Well, I mean. There's all the dugout dancing. It was started by Jose Reyes, I'm sure, but Bautista joined in wholeheartedly.

There's also this, which is about a year old, but is definitely one of the cutest, most good-natured things I've ever seen happen in a pre-game warmup.

(Side note: Isn't Orbit seriously the best mascot in all of baseball?!!)

And Joey Bats, the Barcelona FC superfan, once traded his batting practice shirt to a Jays fan for his Messi jersey - even though said jersey was much too small. Legend.

He's not without his problems, but he's one of the most prolific and consistently amazing players the Blue Jays have ever had. I for one was astonished he didn't make the Franchise Four, because god knows I voted for him! He's set all kinds of records and contributed to all kinds of wins. There is no modern-day Blue Jays without our Joey Bats.

[All GIFs were made by the Blue Jay Hunter]