Blue Jays applaud Bautista's 'unreal' performance
On Friday night, in the most important game of his career and the franchise's most meaningful contest since 1993, Jose Bautista did the same thing he's done almost every day since arriving in Toronto seven years ago: he put the Blue Jays on his back.
Bautista, the afterthought-turned-icon who spent 12 seasons in the majors before appearing in his first playoff game, clobbered a pair of homers - including a game-tying, two-run blast in the eighth - while driving in all three of Toronto's runs in Friday's clash at Kauffman Stadium. Despite a valiant effort from the Blue Jays' longest-tenured player, the Kansas City Royals eked out a 4-3 victory in Game 6 of the ALCS to clinch their second straight AL pennant and squash Toronto's magical season.
"I was just trying to make something positive happen when I came up to the plate," Bautista told reporters. "I was able to come through twice. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough. Sour loss, but we had enough opportunities to do more, and we didn't. They deserved the win."
Though the Blue Jays won't snap their 22-year World Series drought this year, Bautista's performance this postseason will endure, in both franchise lore and the game's history books.
In the best-of-five division series against the Texas Rangers, Bautista managed a .941 OPS in 23 plate appearances and provided one of the most indelible moments in Blue Jays history with his go-ahead homer off Sam Dyson in the seventh inning of Game 5 (and, of course, the bat flip that followed). That was merely a warm-up act, though.
In the league championship series, a best-of-seven showdown with the reigning AL champions, Bautista hit .316/.500/.684 in 26 trips to the plate, drawing seven walks while driving in six runs in as many games. On Friday, Bautista became only the seventh player ever to launch multiple homers in a potential LCS elimination game.
"Unreal performance by Jose," catcher Russell Martin said. "He's definitely that type of player who loves being in that moment. He loves the big situations, and we've seen him do it before, and again today. He did everything he could in his power to try to win. Unfortunately, we just fell short."
Even during the halcyon days of the early 1990s, when the Blue Jays bullied their way to consecutive World Series titles, none of the franchise's myriad stars recorded multiple home runs in a playoff game. Not Roberto Alomar. Not Dave Winfield. Not John Olerud. Not Paul Molitor. Not even Joe Carter. Bautista, a 20th-round draft pick acquired by Toronto in exchange for Robinzon Diaz, is the first.
All told, Bautista finished his first trip to the playoffs with a 1.067 OPS and four homers, establishing another franchise record for home runs in a single postseason.
"It was amazing, 'Bats' had a great season, a great game tonight," third baseman Josh Donaldson said. "It's just been awesome to be able to watch him play on a day-to-day basis, and (to watch) a lot of other guys in this room as well.
"He's been great for us all year. Tonight was another night where he was on the big stage and did a great job for us. Ultimately, we ended up not winning, but like I said, I think we learned a lot about ourselves and about our team."