MiniBautista fan channels inner Jose

It will go down as one of the most clutch home runs in Toronto Blue Jays history, and for one young Jose Bautista fan at the Rogers Centre on Wednesday night, he will have a pretty special video to commemorate the moment.

Instagram user benn2ns posted a video of a young fan dressed up as Jose Bautista in the outfield seats, imitating the Blue Jays slugger’s swing just as Bautista crushed a three-run shot to the put Toronto up 6-3 in the bottom of the seventh inning.

 

Oscar, 9, told CityNews he’s still on a high from what happened on Wednesday night. “He’s got it out of here,” he said when asked what he was thinking when Bautista scored.

 

 

Oscar’s dad Benn, who filmed the now famous video, said his son often imitates Bautista’s warm up stretches before he steps up to the plate. The family calls it his “bat voodoo.”

“I heard (the home run) as I was filming Oscar. I heard it crack and I heard everybody gasping. As I turned around the ball came straight in the shot,” Benn explained. “He was jumping around, people were high-fiving him. I don’t think I’ve screamed like that probably since he was born.”

Oscar said the Jays slugger is his hero and even had the chance to meet him at the very first Jays game the family went to.

“He said nice beard, bro,” the young fan said with a smile.

 

The Jays love runs deep in the family, who immigrated to Canada six years ago.

They have gone to spring training, been to more than 20 games this year and have even gone on the road to cheer on the Jays in Fenway and Yankee Stadium.

“We’re no bandwagon fans. We’ve been there through the highs and the lows.” Oscar’s mother Charlotte explained. “This year has just been absolutely fantastic.”

“We moved to Canada six years ago and had never seen a baseball game live, but we moved and somehow we got swept up in Blue Jays fever and the children got hooked,” she said.

Charlotte jokes that with her son’s new found fame she will now be known as “Mother Bautista.”

Oscar’s older sister Bella said she fell in love with baseball from the very first Jays game. She also has big baseball dreams.

“I want to be the first female pitcher in the MLB,” she said. “All the boys on my team, they always get to pitch first and usually the girls pitch last, I’ve actually been up, last season, five times, which is pretty good for a girl like me.”

Her favourite player is ‘Mr. MVP’ Josh Donaldson, who the family was lucky enough to get a picture with after the game.

 

This won’t be the last game of the year for this baseball loving family. They managed to get tickets for the second home game of the ALCS and said “we can’t wait for the next one!”