Another week of baseball is in the books! And with that, comes another week of brain-melting bat flips that are sure to have your grandfather clutching at his pearls and treasured unwritten rules. This week saw a lot of big air and big moments as stars from around MLB all scratched and clawed to get the top spot in this week’s bat flip roundup. Of course, there can only be one winner, so read on and see how your favorite players stacked up. As always, if you feel I missed any or have an issue with the rankings, feel free to sound off in the comments below. Here we go!
5. Gary Sánchez vs. Drew Smith
https://gfycat.com/contentperfectdassierat-new-york-yankees-gary-sanchez
8/29 – NYM @ NYY
453ft, 108 mph, 29° launch angle
Gary Sánchez continued to work to silence his detractors when he pulverized a 2-2 pitch from Drew Smith for a monster grand slam to shatter a 1-1 deadlock with the Mets last week. In a season where Sánchez has really struggled at the plate, this swing was arguably his most important of the year, and he followed up his grand slam with an even grander bat flip. He tossed his bat high above his head into the Bronx night, smirking as he realized that ball had no chance of staying in the yard. With Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge’s returns in question, The Sanchino is going to need to make more swings like this to power the offense in their absence.
Style: 8.5
Rotation: A flat ~180°
Ruthlessness: 9
4. Josh Reddick vs. Chris Bassitt
https://gfycat.com/madeupdecentindianskimmer
8/29 – OAK @ HOU*
413ft, 102.4 mph, 28° launch angle
Josh Reddick banged this 92mph fastball from Chris Bassitt for a deep home run to right-center field on Saturday night. Reddick saw no need to apologize to his bat after sending it to the moon (or roof?), as after all, it’s just a piece of wood.
Style: 9
Rotation: 360°
Integrity: 10
3. Fernando Tatís Jr. vs. Matt Magill
https://gfycat.com/neglectedelderlyamazontreeboa
8/27 – SEA @ SD
448ft, 110.4 mph, 31° launch angle
What can’t Fernando Tatís Jr. do? He hits tanks, robs hits, swipes bags like they’re on clearance, and hits tanks. Did I mention the last one twice? Oh, well maybe that’s just because he took Matt Magill to the TOP of the Western Metal Supply building with this sixth-inning moonshot last Thursday. If clearing a building wasn’t insulting enough, Tatís unloads the swagger on Magill with his no-doubt bat drop and shuffle out of the box. He’s just effortlessly cool. It’s almost like watching Snoop Dogg, if Snoop dropped nukes instead of platinum records.
Style: 9
Rotation: 0° (drop)
Remaining adjectives to describe Tatís: 0
2. Yasmani Grandal vs. Ian Kennedy
https://gfycat.com/competentimpracticalgannet
8/28 – KC @ CWS
402ft, 107 mph, 42° launch angle
After appearing on this list last week as a right-handed hitter, Yasmani Grandal crossed the plate to deliver an even more exciting bat drop as a lefty against the Royals’ Ian Kennedy. This time, however, Grandal’s home run ended the game, and he sent shockwaves across the field with this menacing bat drop. He slams the bat down with such authority that it almost jumps back into his hands, snapping back up like a rubber band. Grandal tattooed that one, craning his neck to admire his handiwork out of the box. In the words of legendary rapper Pusha T, “Yeuch.”
Style: 9
Rotation: Up & Down & Up & Down
Switch-hitting Catchers: Super cool
1. Xander Bogaerts vs. Austin Voth
https://gfycat.com/aptoccasionalanteater
8/30 – WSH @ BOS
413ft, 105.6 mph, 31° launch angle
Xander Bogaerts tamed the Green Monster with this mammoth blast against Nationals’ starter Austin Voth in their matchup on Sunday. Bogaerts may have given the ball a long ride, but the ride he gave his bat shortly afterward was a close second in distance. Watch that effortless toss as he sends the murder weapon tumbling end over end on his way to first base. It’s so majestic that the camera can’t even follow it all the way down the line, so we’re forced to imagine its brilliant trajectory ourselves, much like a soothing audiobook, except this .gif doesn’t have sound and- y’know what, I’m just going to drop the analogy. It’s a bomb for Bogaerts.
Style: 10
Rotation: No idea but it was sick
Luxury Tax: Reset (iykyk)
We hope you liked this week’s batch of the Best Bat Flips™ from around baseball, and we will see you next week!
Photo Gerry Angus/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Michael Packard (@designsbypack on Twitter & IG)
The camera work/editing in the clips seems to be getting better each week
I haven’t exactly followed who writes this every week but I do remember that at one point someone said they enjoy no-nonsense bat drops.
If the same person who wrote that is paying attention I’d like to point out that the person who most exemplifies the mic-drop bat “flip” is Aaron Hicks of the Yankees, at least while he’s swinging lefty and aiming at the short right porch.
He always knows when he got all of it and almost always unceremoniously mic-drops it at the end of his swing, even if it only travels 319′ and barely into the seats. Here’s hoping, as we go through the final weeks of the season, we get at least one Aaron Hicks mic-drop in this feature.
He acts like it’s just doing his job although he’s clearly elated and confident… I’m not saying I don’t like bat-flips in any way but when Hicks does it it’s a class act:
https://youtu.be/pxuqgwcTqYA?t=348