No one has emerged onto the MLB scene quite as fast as Jose Bautista. After spending numerous years never reaching 20 home runs in a season, Bautista surprised everyone in 2010 with 54 bombs. With more than a quarter of the 2011 season completed, the Blue Jays outfielder is showing that his breakout year was no fluke. He leads the majors in home runs with 20, and is hitting them at an astounding rate of one every 8 at bats (for reference, Mark McGwire is the all-time leader with one homer for every 10 at bats). Before facing the Yankees this past week, we asked the man known as "Joey Bats" to answer the Complex Questionnaire in the newly created MLB Fan Cave to find out just how Complex he really is.
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What’s your favorite song of the moment?
Jose Bautista: I don’t know.
I listen to a lot of stuff. I’ve been listening to the new Wisin Y Yandel album, “Los Vaqueros: El Regreso.” There are a couple
of songs in there that I really like. I can’t say that I have one favorite.
What’s the song
you come out to when you bat up?
Jose Bautista: Some of the
guys sent a request up last year to put “OMG” by Usher, and I’ve did
so well with it that I haven’t messed with that. So I’m gonna keep it for the
time being.
What are you favorite kind of sneakers to wear?
Jose Bautista: I wear a lot of Converse, just the
regular Chucks. They’re comfortable, easy to put on and take off, and
you can wear them with anything. I try to keep it real simple.
What’s the most money you ever spent on an item of a clothing?
Jose Bautista: Probably a leather jacket. A couple grand, nothing too crazy. I know that’s a little bit on the high
end for a jacket, but it’s an item that lasts a long time. It's something that
you’ll keep, and you don’t want to be cold when it’s freezing outside.
Did you start
buying these leather jackets before you made it to the majors or before?
Jose Bautista: Probably the
last couple of years. I’m not trying to brag here, but once your income
starts going up, you tend to buy nicer things, or things that last longer and
those are usually more expensive. That’s probably when I did it. Two years ago
or something like that.
What celebrity is in your Wifey Hall of Fame?
Jose Bautista: You know,
growing up, I always had a crush on Carmen Electra. I can’t say that I have one
right now, but Carmen Electra was definitely the one back then. [Laughs.]
What is your opinion of Odd Future?
Jose Bautista: I don’t have an idea as to who they are or what they do. I'll try to look them up, and see what they’re
all about.
Favorite alcoholic drink?
Jose Bautista: I enjoy a nice beer, here and there. I just like tasting different beers from different parts of the world.
Current video game obsession?
Jose Bautista: I actually don’t
play any video games. I just never got into it growing up, and I haven’t
gotten into it after that.
Dream ride?
Jose Bautista: I don’t have a dream
car. Right now, I would like to have the Audi R8, but I just had a baby girl. It’s a small, two-seater car with no trunk space, so I’m going to have to wait a couple of years to buy it.
Coveted tech product.
Jose Bautista: Probably my
laptop. I don’t go anywhere without it. I just try to keep it with me because
I’m always either looking for information, watching a movie, or listening to
music. It’s kind of bigger and bulkier than what most people use with the iPad
and iPod, but I want to have access to everything and regular-sized web pages.
So I just keep my laptop with me all the time.
Favorite city to visit.
Jose Bautista: I have a lot
for different reasons. I love going to Chicago
because the weather is great, and there are a lot of nice places to go shopping around where
we stay. I love going to San Diego because it's a younger city with even
better weather and it’s really, really nice. But I don’t like
the stadium there. And obviously Miami. Being Latin, you can’t help but love
it when you go down to Miami.
The hot weather and all the Latin people. I enjoy my time whenever I go to those
three cities.
Favorite
ballpark to visit?
Jose Bautista: Not that I
enjoy hitting in it, but I think PNC
Park is the most
beautiful park in the big leagues. If I had to choose one stadium that I like to play in, it would probably be Fenway just because
of the history, and I do very well when I go there.
Who’s the most famous person in your cellphone?
Jose Bautista: You know what, I don’t
know, probably another ball player. I don’t know many celebrities, and it’s not
like I make it part of my life to try to hang out with celebrities or anything
like that. I enjoy when I meet anybody, but I just never got close with
celebrities or anybody famous. I’ll probably just say any other ball player
that you can think of.
How does it feel to have
arguably the best first name ever?
Jose Bautista: [Laughs.] It’s the best name. It’s a bit common, but I love it. I
was named after my grandfather, and it’s a great name to have. You never have
problems with people forgetting your name.
It’s just terrible
sometimes when people still mess it up…
Jose Bautista: When they write my name
with an ‘H,’ it just gets me furious. I just can’t believe people still make
that kind of mistake. I mean, my name is not ‘Hose,” it’s Jose.
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