Bautista enjoying view from the top

Lost in the folklore surrounding Jose Bautista’s breakout 2010 season is this fun fact:

The now-elite power hitter began that campaign batting leadoff.

On paper, at the time, the move made sense. The previous season’s leadoff man, Marco Scutaro, left as a free agent, and Bautista’s knack for drawing walks hinted that he could fill the role.

But on the field it didn’t work out quite so smoothly. Bautista batted just .163 in the 12 games he led off in 2010, and his stint at the top off the order accounted for just one of the league-leading 54 homers he hit that year.

Eventually Bautista warmed to the role, hitting nine homers and posting a .800 OPS over 40 games batting leadoff in 2016.

This time around the move to the leadoff spot has jump-started the slugger’s offence.

The six-time all-star and threetime Silver Slugger winner led off again in Thursday night’s series finale against the Orioles, marking his eighth straight game at the top of the Jays’ offence. Heading into Thursday, Bautista had hit .379 while batting leadoff, with two home runs and six RBIs.

“He’s producing,” Jays manager John Gibbons said before Thursday’s game. “He’s getting on base, hitting some homers . . . getting a couple (RBIs). A lot like he did last year when he went up there. You can’t knock results.”

Bautista entered Thursday hitting just .209 in June, a figure that would be even more anemic without his recent offensive outburst. In eight games since moving to the top of the lineup, Bautista has 11 hits and four walks.

He led off Wednesday night’s game with a home run, his ninth career leadoff homer and the first for any Jay this year.

Gibbons doesn’t attribute Bautista’s success as a leadoff batter to any special adjustments to fit the new role. Instead, Gibbons says Bautista thrives precisely because he hasn’t tinkered with the way he hits since moving to the top spot.

“Wherever he’s hitting, he’s got the same approach,” Gibbons said. “That’s not going to change his thinking, where he’s hitting. He’s doing pretty good there.”