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Heroes and Villains

Offseason Birdland. ‘Tis a silly place.


In the last couple of days, there has been a buzz about the possibility of Jose Bautista joining the Orioles via free agency. Before I go much further, I want to point out that this is one of those things that smells like it’s all smoke, no fire (or as the Baltimorons would say, “all hat, no cattle.”) I think that the Bautista-to-Baltimore talk is someone’s camp trying to dredge up some competition, to make their actual target nervous.

It could be the Orioles signaling to Mark Trumbo’s camp that they are really really really willing to move on from Trumbo, and fall into the arms of a player they have publicly labeled a “villain.” Or it could be Bautista’s representatives trying to make Toronto worry that they’ll have to see him 19 times next season in orange and black.

Admittedly, we had some fun with this rumor ourselves, on Episode 186.

 

But let’s slow down on this one, folks. I find it highly unlikely that Bautista comes to Baltimore. Instead, it appears that he’s headed back home, where his hometown fans can accept their own villain, with open arms.

 


I never really thought Bautista was a possibility, but I’m fascinated by the fan reaction “what ifs” involved. Bautista, some argue, is a classic case of a player you hate as an opponent, but would love on your team. There are plenty of those players around – Baltimore fans just witnessed one retire from the Ravens. And it’s possible that Bautista fits into that category. It’s possible that Jose Bautista would be absolutely beloved, once he donned the laundry of your team.

Everywhere but Baltimore.

In 28 other Major League cities, Bautista is just the guy who scowls and flips bats. He’s just the guy that it kinda felt good when he got punched in the face, even though face punching has no place in baseball. He’s just a jerk, but he could be your jerk.

Not so, in Baltimore. Bautista hasn’t just flipped bats. He’s run his mouth. He’s made it personal. Darren O’Day and Adam Jones are good guys, but can you imagine them having to work closely with him after the drama they’ve endured? Can you imagine being a player in that clubhouse, knowing you might have to publicly defend the shenanigans that would surely follow with Bautista on the team?

As a fan, his shtick is one that I would struggle to forget.  I held my nose when Delmon Young came to town, and he delivered what is possibly the biggest hit of my Orioles fandom. It would be awful to have a similar situation with Bautista. Some fans ask “wouldn’t you rather have a World Series?” Yes, of course I would. But Bautista is not the player that takes this club from a fringe Wild Card contender to a World Series champion. I’m not sure I could do it, to be honest. And if there were ever a player who deserved to be booed down the Orange Carpet, it would be this one.

I don’t pretend that this is a rational argument. It’s the fan(atic) in me.

 
Damn, I hate it when our friend Dillon Atkinson, of Orioles Uncensored, has a good point. But he does. I agree with him, to the extent that our players have their own baggage, including Manny Machado, and that we would be ALL OVER him, in fits of righteous indignation, if he played for another club. But I think the proper comparison is not “hey, we root for Manny, who has been a jerk, so can’t we root for another jerk?” I think the better question is “if Manny’s bat throwing day had been followed by years of antagonism with the Athletics – including 19 meetings a year, with playoff implications, would their fans openly accept him as an offseason acquisition?”

That’s the question. With a Manny Machado talent, fans are going to be a lot more forgiving. I don’t think I have to remind anyone that Jose Bautista is not a Manny Machado talent.

 

Now it’s time to wait for the next absurd rumor to hit Orioles Twitter, and hope that sometime in the next month and a half, Dan Duquette can find some players in a the bargain bin to push this club back into the edge of contention. It’s the identity (and accompanying price tag) they seem comfortable with, and at this rate, the best for which we can hope.

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