“The 1-1 from Dyson, Bautista with a drive, deep left field, no doubt about it!” This was the call that sent every Blue Jays fan across the country into a frenzy on October 14th, 2015. José Bautista crushed a massive 3-run homerun in the bottom of the 7th inning of Game 5 of the ALDS, which would ultimately send the Jays to their first ALCS in 22 years. This moment will live forever in Blue Jays history for many reasons. One, for the magnitude of the moment, two, for its historic significance, and finally, because of the man who hit it. Bautista was the face of the Blue Jays and for a majority of his career, they were a sub-.500 team. In the team’s first playoff appearance since 1993, and the first playoff appearance for Bautista, it was only fitting that he would deliver one of the biggest swings in the history of the franchise. This was obviously one of, if not the greatest moment of Bautista’s career, but he was one of the best hitters of his time, and he is now going to be part of Blue Jays history forever as they add his name to the Level of Excellence.
The Jays acquired Bautista on August 21st, 2008, from the Pirates for a player to be named later because they needed a third baseman – yes, a third baseman – due to an injury to Scott Rolen. In 2009, he started the season as bench bat and played a backup to Rolen and outfielders Alex Rios and Adam Lind. He scuffled for most of the season, but finished the year strong as he hit .257, with a .606 slugging percentage, and 10 home runs with 21 RBI. Despite looking like a possible non-tender candidate for most of the season, a good finish led to the Jays re-signing him to a one-year $2.4 million deal for 2010.
2010 was Bautista’s break out season. He played in a career-high 161 games and slashed .260/.378/.617 with a .995 OPS, 124 RBI and hit a franchise record 54 homeruns. He was selected to his first of what would be five consecutive All-Star games, finished fourth in AL MVP voting, and won the Hank Aaron Award and Silver Slugger for his tremendous offensive performance. Believing 2010 would not be a one-time fluke year for Bautista, the Jays signed him to a 5-year, $64 million extension prior to the 2011 season. He followed up his historic 2010 campaign with arguably an even better season in 2011. He hit .302/.447/.608 with an OPS of 1.056, 103 RBI, and 43 homeruns that season; he led all of MLB in SLG, OPS, walks, and homeruns. He became the first player to lead the majors in homeruns in consecutive seasons since Mark McGwire did it in 1998 and 1999. He once again won the Hank Aaron Award becoming the third player in the award’s history to win it in back-to-back seasons. He also won another Silver Slugger Award and finished third in the AL MVP voting. While Bautista is most known for his offensive achievements, he could also change a game on the defensive side as well, mainly due to his cannon of an arm. In 2011, he led AL right fielders in double plays turned with 5, was fourth in assists with 13, and fifth in errors with 6.
Bautista only played in 92 and 118 games in 2012 and 2013, respectively, due to season-ending injuries late in each season. He returned to form in 2014 as he hit 35 home runs, and won his third and final Silver Slugger Award. Fast forward to 2015, at 34 years old, Bautista was still looking for his first postseason appearance of his career. The Blue Jays made multiple offseason moves heading into the 2015 season, and none bigger than acquiring Josh Donaldson from the Oakland Athletics. The three-headed monster of Donaldson, Bautista, and Encarnación in the middle of the Jays’ lineup struck fear into the hearts of pitchers across the league and helped lead the Jays to their first postseason appearance since 1993.
Bautista finished the 2015 regular season with a .250 average, .913 OPS, 40 homeruns, and 114 RBI. He carried that season’s success into the postseason where he hit .273/.304/.636 with 2 homeruns and 5 RBI – and one epic bat flip – in the five-game ALDS against the Texas Rangers. In the ALCS against the Kansas City Royals, Bautista hit .316/.500/.684 and had an OPS of 1.184. Despite a losing effort, in game 6 of the series, he hit 2 homeruns, including a two-run game-tying shot in the top of the eighth inning.
Bautista’s final year in Toronto was in 2017, and while his overall numbers that year weren’t on par with what he had put up earlier in his career, he still hit 23 homeruns which marked his eighth straight season with at least 20 homeruns. On September 24th, 2017, Bautista played in his final game as a Blue Jay in the Rogers Centre, and the fans made sure to give him a much-deserved ovation to express their gratitude for one of the best players to ever wear a Blue Jays jersey.
The Blue Jays have been around since 1977, and a lot of great players have worn their uniform. While Bautista wasn’t on any championship teams, and only made the playoffs twice, he still ranks amongst the best to ever do it in Toronto. In franchise history, Bautista ranks fifth in games played (1235), sixth in hits (1103), fourth in OPS (.878), second in runs scored (790), third in RBI (766), second in homeruns (288), and first in WAR amongst position players (38.3). It’s no question that he is one of the greatest players in franchise history and was the face of the team for a generation of young baseball fans in Toronto. He helped put the Blue Jays back on the map in the early 2010s, and gave some edge and excitement to what were otherwise, some lackluster Blue Jays teams. The Level of Excellence consists of some of the very best to ever wear a Blue Jays uniform, and now José Bautista will be added to that historic list. Fans now and forever will always remember what he meant to the organization and will never forget his name, José, José, José, Joséééééé.