- Oct 16, 2026
- 0
- 0
SportsMafia Wire graphic. Team logos and player headshots via ESPN.
The Toronto Blue Jays will add two franchise standouts to their Level of Excellence this season, recognizing Jose Bautista and J.A. Happ for their contributions to the club.
Bautista, who played in Toronto from 2008 to 2017, ranks second in franchise history with 288 home runs and 37.3 bWAR among batters. He also sits second in runs scored (790) and walks (803), third in RBI (766), and fifth in games played (1,235) and slugging percentage (.506). His iconic bat flip in Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS became one of the most memorable moments in club history. Bautista previously received Level of Excellence honors in 2023.
Happ pitched two stints with Toronto, compiling a 59-41 record and 3.88 ERA across 135 appearances. His 2016 season stood out, as he went 20-4 with a 3.18 ERA and finished sixth in Cy Young voting. That postseason, he earned a win against the Rangers in the ALDS before taking a loss against Cleveland in the ALCS.
The left-hander's 59 victories rank ninth in franchise history, and his 20-win campaign joined an exclusive group of only six such seasons in Blue Jays history. Toronto originally acquired him from Houston in July 2012 in a multiplayer deal that included Joe Musgrove going the other way.
Written by the SportsMafia Wire desk in our own words from the original reporting (AI-assisted, checked against the source).