Royals 2004 Star Series: Jose Bautista


Many Royals fans remember when Jose Bautista was a member of the Toronto Blue Jays postseason run in 2015. While Bautista is remembered as one of the great Blue Jays players, he wasn't always a Blue Jay's fan favorite. In 2004, the Royals acquired the future slugger from the then Tampa Bay Devil Rays for cash. During his short stay in Kansas City, he batted an even .200 in 13 games. In 2012, Bautista sat down with Jeff Zimmerman of Royals Review for an interview about his time in a Royals uniform: "I learn a lot from the team. Tony Pena was a great manager and he taught me a bunch. The Royals felt they needed a catcher, so I was moved.” Kansas City had agreed to trade Bautista to the New York Mets for one of their top prospects in utility player Justin Huber. In my opinion, the team at the time had no idea what they traded away for a catcher that saw his catching career end in a blink of an eye after suffering torn cartilage in his left knee. 
Bautista's big break in his career came in 2010 as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays. The 2010 season for Bautista was an incredible one. Bautista that season made a name for himself, "Joey Bats," after clobbering 54 home runs with a career best of 124 runs batted in. The Royals obviously didn't have the slugger in his prime. Kansas City seems to always see their former players have success elsewhere once they leave Kansas City including Jorge Lopez, Wil Myers, John Buck, and many others. Despite Bautista's struggles early in his career with the Orioles, Rays, Royals, and the Pirates, he was able to turn his career around in Toronto with the Blue Jays. The loss of the slugging outfielder from 2004 hurt the Royals in the postseason in 2015. During the Blue Jay's run in the playoffs, Bautista had two home runs against Kansas City pitching and six runs batted in. Although Bautista only played in 13 games for the Royals in 2004 and struggled mightily during his time with the team, Bautista will always be known as one of the star players that the Royals gave up on too soon due to their lack of patience with a then 23-year old's development in the big leagues. 

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