José Antonio Bautista Santos (born October 19, 1980), nicknamed “Joey Bats“, is a Dominican former professional baseball right fielder and third baseman who played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), primarily for the Toronto Blue Jays. Bautista also played for Baltimore Orioles, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, and Philadelphia Phillies.
The Pirates selected Bautista in the 20th round of the 2000 MLB draft. He played for four different clubs before joining the Blue Jays in 2008. In 2010, he became the 26th member of the 50 home run club, while leading MLB in home runs for the first of two consecutive seasons. From 2010–2015, Bautista hit more home runs than any player in the major leagues. An MLB All-Star selection six consecutive times, he won three Silver Slugger Awards and two Hank Aaron Awards. In addition, he received the American League (AL) Player of the Month Award five times, and the AL Player of the Week four times. Before being traded to the Blue Jays, Bautista primarily played third base.
Although major league scouts initially took note of Bautista while he was in junior college for his batting skills – including power hitting potential and a strong throwing arm – his career would take many detours, until Bautista finally realized his potential, in 2010. He made his MLB debut with the Baltimore Orioles in 2004, and, that year, became the first player ever to appear on five MLB rosters in one season. The last of those clubs was the Pirates, where he would spend four-plus seasons, seeing time as a utility player, while playing at six different positions, including designated hitter (DH).
Bautista was then traded to the Blue Jays, in August 2008. After making adjustments to his swing, he broke through with ten home runs in September 2009. Bautista was voted in the top ten in the AL Most Valuable Player Award four times, and is a leader or among the top ten in numerous offensive single-season and career categories in Blue Jays’ franchise history.
From 2010 to 2017, Bautista hit at least 20 home runs each year, and in four of those seasons, hit at least 35 home runs, both scored and drove in at least 100 runs, and drew at least 100 bases on balls, including twice leading the AL. In 2015, while playing in the playoffs for the first time, his bat flip in the American League Division Series (ALDS) caused a sensation that became a symbol of Toronto’s first playoff appearance in 22 years. In 2011, Bautista set up a program that assists athletes from the Dominican Republic to attend universities in the United States.
What is José Bautista’s Net Worth?
Jose Bautista is a Dominican former professional baseball player who has a net worth of $45 million. Jose Bautista, AKA “Joey Bats,” earned his net worth over a 15-year career in the MLB playing for the Toronto Blue Jays and also the Orioles, Devil Rays, Royals, Pirates, Braves, Mets, and Phillies. Jose’s last professional season was 2018, though he was given a one day contract in August 2023 from the Blue Jays so he could “retire” as a member of the team. As we detail below, during his major league career, Jose Bautista earned $105 million in MLB salary.
Net Worth: $45 Million
Date of Birth: Oct 19, 1980 (42 years old)
Place of Birth: Santo Domingo
Gender: Male
Height: 6 ft (1.83 m)
Profession: Baseball player
Nationality: Dominican Republic
Early life
Coming from a middle-class family in the Dominican Republic that placed great importance on education, Bautista began studying English at age eight. His mother was an accountant and financial planner, and his father, who had earned a master’s degree in agricultural engineering in Hungary, ran poultry farms. Bautista attended a private high school, De La Salle High School, in Santo Domingo. He was aided by the Latin Athletes Education Fund, designed for players from Spanish-speaking countries aspiring to play college baseball in the United States. Although he invested much time in pursuing professional baseball, Bautista studied business at Mother and Teacher Pontifical Catholic University in the event a career in baseball did not materialize.
After working out with various Major League Baseball (MLB) clubs, he turned down offers of $5,000 from the New York Yankees and $42,000 from the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Cincinnati Reds offered him $300,000, which Bautista accepted; however, before the contract could become official, the team changed ownership and subsequently rescinded the offer. Bautista then created a highlight tape of himself using a camcorder and sent it to various colleges in the United States. There was no response until he received a call from Oscar Pérez, whom he had known from the Quique Cruz League in the Dominican Republic. Pérez informed him of the Latin Athletes Education Fund, designed for players from Spanish-speaking countries aspiring to play college baseball in the United States. He connected Bautista with Don Odermann, a businessman in the San Francisco Bay Area. Odermann, who assisted baseball players from Latin America desiring to play baseball in the US, knew that Chipola College, a junior college in Marianna, Florida, was seeking an everyday player. There, Bautista played for two years until being drafted.
MLB Career
Jose Bautista was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates at 599th overall in the 20th round of the 2000 MLB Draft. He signed on with the team for a $500,000 signing bonus. The third baseman played in the minor leagues and then was taken in the Rule 5 Draft by the Baltimore Orioles. Bautista made his major league debut for the Orioles in April of 2004. He was claimed by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and then purchased by the Kansas City Royals before being traded to the New York Mets and then the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bautista is the only player to be on five different MLB rosters in one season. He settled in Pittsburgh until 2008 before he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Blue Jays needed a third baseman to replace injured Scott Rolen, but in 2010, Bautista began the campaign as the starting right fielder. This is where he would really hit his stride and make a name for himself as a professional baseball player. He became a six-time All-Star (2010-2015), three-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2010, 2011, 2014), two-time Hank Aaron Award winner (2010, 2011), and two-time MLB home run leader (2010, 2011). In his last year with the Blue Jays, Bautista’s batting average dipped to .203, and the team declined his 2018 option.
Jose Bautista played for the Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, and Philadelphia Phillies over the course of the 2018 season but didn’t catch on with any of them. And after taking off the 2019 campaign, he never returned to the MLB.
Baustista has represented the Dominican Republic national baseball team who won a bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
In May of 2020, Bautista was named a special advisor to the general manager for the Leones del Escogido in the Dominican Professional Baseball League.
