Jose Bautista to be inducted into Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame

Toronto Blue Jays great Jose Bautista will be inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in June.

The Hall announced its class of 2025 on Wednesday.

Bautista headlines the class that also includes former major leaguer Erik Bedard, Canadian junior national team head coach Greg Hamilton, women’s national team star Amanda Asay, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League legend Arleene Noga and Gerry Snyder, who helped bring MLB to Canada during his role as a city councillor in Montreal.

Asay, Noga and Snyder will be inducted posthumously.

“We are proud and excited to celebrate the outstanding careers of this year’s inductees in St. Marys this June,” Hall board chair Jeremy Diamond said in a release. “Each of them, in their own distinct way, has had a tremendous impact on the game of baseball in our country.”

Bautista spent a decade with the Blue Jays. He hit a single-season franchise record 54 home runs in 2010 and is second all-time on the team with 288 homers. The six-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger helped Toronto win its first division title in 22 years during the 2015 season. His iconic “bat flip” three-run homer gave the Blue Jays the lead in the decisive Game 5 of the ALDS against the Texas Rangers.

The Santo Domingo, D.R., native also played with the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves and Tampa Bay Rays during his 15 years in the majors.

Bautista, who signed a one-day contract in 2023 to retire with the Blue Jays, finished his career with 344 home runs and 975 RBIs.

“My years in Toronto were the best of my career,” Bautista said in the same release.

“Taking the field every day and representing an entire country that so passionately supported us back was truly amazing. I am deeply humbled and honoured by this announcement of being inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and joining many other greats. I cannot wait to share it with you all in St. Marys this summer.”

Bedard pitched 11 seasons in the majors with the Orioles, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Pirates, Rays and Boston Red Sox. The lefty from Nevan, Ont., won 71 games and threw 1,246 strikeouts. His best season came in 2007 with the Orioles, when he posted a 13-5 record, 3.16 ERA and 221 strikeouts to finish fifth in voting for the American League Cy Young Award.

Hamilton, from Toronto, has guided the Canadian junior national team to a silver medal at the under-18 Baseball World Cup in 2012 and bronze medals in 1997 and 2006. He has also served as the general manager for the senior national team and won gold at the 2011 and 2015 Pan Am Games.

Asay, from Prince George, B.C., spent a decade-and-a-half with the national team and was named team MVP in 2006 and 2016. She won five women’s World Cup medals, plus a silver medal at the 2015 Pan Am Games.

Noga, from Ogema, Sask., was nicknamed the “Iron Lady” after playing over 300 consecutive games in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. She also won nine provincial championships in softball.

Snyder helped bring the Expos to his native Montreal as a city councillor. He met with then-MLB commissioner Ford C. Frick in 1962 and continued his pursuit in 1967 when the National League announced expansion plans. Snyder was rewarded for his efforts as Montreal earned Canada’s first major league franchise on May 27, 1968.