O'Flaherty surprised Bautista wants to fight again after Odor incident

Jose Bautista's bat-flipping antics may have got him into some trouble once again.

Nearly a year to the day that Bautista was punched in the face by Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor in apparent retaliation for his infamous postseason bat flip from 2015, the Toronto Blue Jays outfielder may have gotten under the skin of the Atlanta Braves for a similar incident Wednesday.

With his team down 8-3 in the eighth inning, Bautista flipped his bat and stared down Braves reliever Eric O'Flaherty after hitting a solo home run during a heated contest between the two clubs.

As he rounded first base, Braves second baseman Jace Peterson had something to say to the veteran slugger, who was then confronted by catcher Kurt Suzuki at home plate.

Bautista's action immediately irritated members of the Braves, and the team's benches cleared for the second time of the evening.

Related: Benches clear for 2nd time after Bautista's bat flip

There were no fisticuffs exchanged, but O'Flaherty's bewildered that Bautista is so intent on provoking an opponent with his at-bat antics just a year removed from the infamous "punch."

"I'm surprised he's ready to fight again after what happened last year (with Odor)," O'Flaherty told reporters postgame when speaking about Bautista, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman.

Bautista's bat flip followed a verbal exchange between teammate Kevin Pillar and Braves reliever Jason Motte an inning earlier, and after first baseman Freddie Freeman exited the game after being hit in the left hand by a pitch.

Freeman was the seventh Braves player to be plunked by a Blue Jays pitcher since the start of the home-and-home series between the two clubs that began Monday.

Bautista explained postgame that he wasn't trying to show anyone up and that's what he told Suzuki at home plate.

"Basically just let them know that I wasn't trying to show up anybody and hopefully it's in the past," he explained to reporters, including MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm. "It has nothing to do with (frustration) but it was definitely not something that was fitting for the moment."