On Aug. 12, 2023, the Toronto Blue Jays will add Jose Bautista’s name to their Level of Excellence—a deserving tribute to a generational MLB slugger who spent ten years with the team. However, Jose was not the only slugging Dominican ‘Bats’ to wear the powder blue.

Between 1999 and 2001, Leocadio Francisco “Tony” Batista (also of Dominican Republic descent) sported #7 for the Jays.

batista

During his three-year tenure, Batista would average .258 with 80 home runs and 238 RBIs. In 2000, Batista had 41 home runs and 114 RBIs and was voted to the American League All-Star team. 

He is remembered for his extremely unorthodox open-batting stance, which looked like he was about to take a pitch from third base. 

In one game with the Jays, Batista beat out an infield single and ran it out to the outfield wall (some 328 feet away from the home plate). He then turned and walked all the way back to first base.

In 2001, Batista found himself on the waiver wire after a .207 first half; he eventually was picked up by the Baltimore Orioles and faced the unenviable task of replacing Hall of Fame shortstop Cal Ripkin Jr.

https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6164042682437696

Batista was a member of the Montreal Expos for their final season (2004) in Montreal and tied for the team lead in home runs (31) that year.

He started his career with the Oakland A’s, played for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Minnesota Twins, and finished his career with Washington Nationals, retiring in 2007.