Thursday, September 2, 2010

Former Chipola Player Is Major League Home Run Leader

Former Chipola baseball player Jose Bautista is still Major League Baseball’s homerun leader with 40 as of Aug. 23.

Bautista, a right-fielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, smacked two homeruns in the Jays 3-2 win over the Yankees on Aug. 23. The two gave him a Major League-leading 40 home runs on the season and accounted for all of the offense for the Blue Jays (65-59).

Bautista belted 44 home runs combined over his past three big league campaigns. With 38 games remaining on the schedule for the Blue Jays, Bautista sits seven home runs shy of George Bell’s single-season club record of 47 bombs in 1987. The right fielder is the first player to achieve 40 homers in a season for the Jays since Carlos Delgado launched 42 in ‘03.

Bautista was a member of the Chipola Baseball squad before being drafted by the Pittsburg Pirates in the 20th round of the 2000 amateur draft. His official signing came in May 2001, the same year the Indians captured the Panhandle Conference Championship and was the NJCAA Region VIII Runner-up.

During his time in the majors, the 29 year-old has also played for the Pirates, the Orioles and the Royals.

For the latest news about Chipola Athletics, visit www.chipolaathletics.com.

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