MLB Network's Greatest Bat Flips and the Bautista Snub

The MLB Network aired a special on the greatest bat flips in baseball history and much to the chagrin of Toronto Blue Jays fans, Jose Bautista came in at the second spot. Bautista being #1 was the easy choice, it's what everyone expected. MLB Network likely chose to go with Tom Lawless in the #1 spot as a way to stir controversy and keep people talking about the program. Since I'm writing an article about it, it clearly worked.

This isn't to take anything away from the Lawless bat flip. It was epic, it was during the World Series and it has a retro charm to it.

But the Bautista bat flip was so much more. It wasn't just about the moment when the home run was hit. It was about the mayhem at the top of the inning when Russell Martin doinked a ball off the bat of Shin-Soo Choo. It was about the frustration the Blue Jays and their fans felt after giving up a crucial run on such a bizarre play. There was the craziness of the bottom of the 7th when misplay after misplay allowed the Blue Jays to tie the game. There was the Dalton Pompey slide that took out the Rangers catcher and added even more animosity. It was already an insane game when Bautista stepped to the plate.

When Bautista crushed that ball and unleashed his bat into the stratosphere an entire nation erupted. Blue Jays fans had waited 22 years for this moment and Bautista's toss of the bat was an exclamation point.

Watch the video and listen to that stadium. Jose Bautista's bat flip was a moment of pure emotion. For the players and for the fans.

It wasn't just about a long fly ball and the flip of a bat. It was one of the most iconic moments in a generation of baseball and that is why it is greatest bat flip in baseball history, no matter what MLB Network says.