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Jose Bautista Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays legend Jose Bautista shared advice with the 2026 team as they look to get back into the playoffs this season.

Bautista was in town for his bobblehead giveaway day alongside fellow legendary Blue Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion. The Blue Jays had a successful series this weekend against the Pittsburgh Pirates overall, winning two of three games with Bautista watching closely nearby.

Jose Bautista Shares Advice With 2026 Blue Jays

Speaking to Lindsay Dunn of Off The Roster, Bautista was asked what message he would share with the Blue Jays about how the season is going, and “Joey Bats” offered sage advice.

“It’s a long season. It’s a marathon. What they need to continue to do is keep working hard to get consistent, to get healthy, and to deliver high-energy games all day long. The results are going to come and go, but if they stick to it and trust the process, at the end of the season they’ll be at the top of the standings and get ready for a playoff run,” Bautista said.

As one of the greatest players in franchise history, Bautista was the perfect person to ask what the current version of the team needs to do, as he was part of many different iterations of the Blue Jays. Although Bautista ultimately fell short of helping the Blue Jays deliver their fans the goal of a third World Series championship in franchise history, he was still one of the greatest players to ever play for Toronto, and he is still loved to this very day.

In addition to the 288 home runs Bautista hit as a Blue Jay during the regular season, he is most fondly remembered for his homer heard all around the world in 2015 when the Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers in Game 5 of the ALDS. To this day, it’s one of the most famous home runs in baseball history, as Bautista won the game and celebrated his homer with the iconic bat flip.

Blue Jays Staying in Playoff Mix

Through the first 53 games of the season, the Blue Jays are 25-28, good for one spot back of the third and final Wild Card spot in the American League. The team had a slow start to the season, and they are double digits back of the Tampa Bay Rays for the American League East division crown, so it will be difficult to catch them. But since they are only one game back of a Wild Card spot, there is no reason to think the Blue Jays can’t sneak into the playoffs this season. If they do, then they have the pitching and the firepower in their lineup to make noise, if everyone is healthy.

As Bautista reminded the fans, MLB seasons are 162 games, so while the first 53 games haven’t been great for the Jays, they still have two-thirds of the season left to go. If they can get more consistent with their hitting, pitching, and defense, this team is capable of making another World Series run, especially if their injured players come back to the lineup and return to form.