The Detroit Blue Jays have signed Jose Bautista, 42, to a one-day contract. This is to allow Batista, whose major league career ended in 2018, to have his retirement ceremony.
The Toronto organization announced on Wednesday that it has signed Batista to a one-day contract to allow him to officially retire as a member of the team.
to officially retire as a member of the organization.
“Few names are as synonymous with Blue Jays baseball as Jose Bautista,” said Toronto President Mark Shapiro. It is our great honor to have him officially retire in a Blue Jays uniform. On behalf of the generations of Blue Jays fans who had the privilege of watching his big moments on the field and inspiring work ethic, we thank Jose for a fascinating decade representing Toronto.”
Batista was selected by Pittsburgh in the 20th round of the 2000 draft and made his major league debut in 2004 with Baltimore. Soon after, he bounced between Tampa Bay, Kansas City, the New York Mets, and Pittsburgh, becoming the first major leaguer to play for five teams in a single season.
During the 2008 season, he was traded to Toronto, where he played for 10 seasons until 2017. In 2010, he led the majors in home runs with 54, and in 2011, he led the league in home runs for the second straight year with 43. His major league career ended in 2018 after playing for Atlanta, the New York Mets, and Philadelphia. He hit 344 home runs in his major league career.
In his 10 seasons with Toronto, Batista finished second in franchise history with 288 home runs, third in franchise history with 766 RBIs and seventh in franchise history with 1103 hits. He was an All-Star for six consecutive years from 2010 to 2015 and won three Silver Slugger Awards in 2010, 2011, and 2014.
The best moment of Batista’s baseball career came during the 2015 playoffs. Toronto advanced to the postseason for the first time in 22 years after winning the 1993 World Series.
The Jays met the Texas Rangers in the American League Division Series, dropping Games 1 and 2 before winning Games 3 and 4 to force a best-of-five series. In Game 5 at Rogers Centre, Batista hit a game-winning three-run home run with runners on first and third in the seventh inning with the score tied 3-3.
After hitting the home run, he threw his bat high in the air in what has become a famous bat flip in Major League Baseball. Toronto advanced to the Championship Series with a reverse sweep of Texas, where Shin-Soo Choo was playing at the time.메이저놀이터
Batista also represented the Dominican Republic at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. In the first round elimination game against Israel, Batista hit a game-tying single to save his team from elimination.
In the bronze medal game against South Korea, he started at third base, then switched to first base and played the rest of the game. He got the final out to seal the bronze medal.