BAUTISTA REMAINS PICTURE OF COOL IN TORONTO RETURN
Former Blue Jays star shows little emotion, but fans certainly displayed their feelings
BLUE JAYS 8, METS 6
When the Toronto Raptors selected forward Andrea Bargnani first overall in the 2006 NBA draft, Maurizio Gherardini, the club’s assistant GM, was asked to describe the big Italian’s personality.
The media assumed (politically incorrectly) that being Italian, Bargnani would wear his emotions on his sleeve. You know, wave his arms a lot and cup his hands together and look to the heavens when things weren’t going well. With a chuckle, Gherardini assured us that was not the case. He described Bargnani, whom he knew well, as having the personality of a “Russian soldier” (the interview was quite the victory for stereotyping). Gherardini was dead on. Jose Bautista, who on Tuesday played his first game in Toronto as a visiting player since June 24, 2004, struck me the same way. A native of the Dominican Republic, Bautista always seemed in total control, even when he was infuriating opposing teams and fans. He never fit the description of a so-called hot-blooded Latino, at least off the field — and usually on — even though he certainly had a knack of getting under the other team’s skin.
Joey Bats was generally the same guy after a win, loss, a bad game or an outstanding game, which he had plenty of during his stay with the Jays between 200817. He’d flip a bat in the playoffs and get everyone on the other side wanting to wring his neck. After, in the clubhouse, he’d explain calmly how he was just helping his team win, and how his flip was no big deal.
Toward the end of last season, when it became obvious the Jays were not going to pick up his option and the fans started showing their love and support during the team’s last homestand, Bautista played it cool. He said the right things, but there weren’t any breakdowns or teary-eyed moments.
And he loved it in Toronto. He turned his career around when the Jays acquired him in August 2008. He became a huge fan favourite and a big fan of this city.
Bautista had power (his 288 homers are the second most in Jays franchise history), a great eye (ranks second in team history in walks, with 803), was a clutch hitter (third in team history with 766 RBIs), a great arm in his prime, and was a good outfielder. But it was largely his personality that made him great. His ability to keep cool. It was his preparation and work ethic more than his emotions that made him the player he was during his heyday in T.O.
“(Bautista) was one of the most prepared guys I’ve ever been around,” said Jays manager John Gibbons.
“He brought a great intensity every day, whether things were going good or bad. And he showed up every day expecting to play, wanting to play. People wanted to see him play. He had those big, big years. There were a lot of games he shouldn’t have played, but he played anyway. Yeah. I mean, an intense competitor. He’s driven, you know. Very driven.”
And cool. When a pitcher threw at his head, invariably Bautista would get up, collect himself and come through with a huge knock.
During a pre-game media conference on Tuesday, Bautista again showed little emotion, though someone said there might have been a tear in his eye when it was over. As usual, he said the right things, insisting he wasn’t angry or upset that the Jays didn’t pick up his option last season, even though he wanted to stay.
“It was a business decision and an understandable one,” he said. “I’m not naive or selfish enough to believe that they should have done that. Numbers speak for themselves and it wasn’t my best year, that’s no secret. But I received an opportunity and here I am (with the New York Mets), looking to make the best of it. I’m not trying to dwell in the past and let any of that drive me now. I feel like I can find enough drive just in my desire to continue to play the game and help my team win.”
Bautista had a knack for pressing buttons, infuriating the opposition — enough for someone to punch him in the face, to throw the ball at his head, to scream at him when he was standing at first base. But he stayed in control.
Before Tuesday’s game, an 8-6 win by the Jays, a video tribute was shown on the scoreboard at Rogers Centre and the fans gave Bautista a long standing ovation. Bautista waved and applauded in return, and continued to stretch. Clearly he appreciated the response, but he kept it cool.
Bautista had an interesting outing in his return, with one major flaw. He walked three times, hit a single, and made a nice running grab to steal a base hit from Russell Martin. But he also picked up a huge error in the seventh when Randal Grichuk hit a single to right and Bautista failed to catch the ball on the bounce, allowing Grichuk to go to third. The error proved to be costly, as Toronto went on to tie it 6-6 on a three-run homer by Yangervis Solarte. The Jays won it on a two-run homer by Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. in the eighth.