Phew. June is finally in the books, and with it, some of the best bat flips and drops we have seen all season. It’s going to be a difficult task and an exciting mess to narrow it all down to the Best Bat Flip of the Month, which is exactly why I’m having you, the wonderful Pitcher List community do it for me instead. It’s called delegating, or something. But I have faith that you are up to the task! For those keeping score at home, in April the community bestowed Nick Castellanos with the highest of bat flipping honors, and in May, Ronald Acuña Jr. wore the crown. It’s now time to vote for the best of the best in June. For a quick refresher, the following selections are all in chronological order and are not ranked. Will this finally be the month that Fernando Tatis Jr. takes home the gold? Or will someone else emerge victorious? You decide!
Presenting the Best Bat Flips of June!
6/4 — Gleyber Torres vs. Eduardo Rodríguez
https://gfycat.com/gargantuanslightboa
418ft, 104.7 mph, 30° LA
Gleyber Torres struck another blow in the endless struggle between the Red Sox and Yankees with this two-run drive at the expense of Eduardo Rodríguez. He then gave us an iconic bat flip, which is made even better with the context it came in a relatively low leverage situation in the fourth inning. But, then again, when you absolutely demolish a ball like this, nothing is off the table. An absolutely ruthless flip befitting a ruthless home run.
6/10 — Jazz Chisholm Jr. vs. Chi Chi González
https://gfycat.com/faroffjovialcardinal
431ft, 108.8 mph, 27° LA
Jazz Chisholm Jr. just oozes cool. Whether it’s sporting a Gatorade-blue haircut, making unbelievable plays in the infield, or absolutely crushing taters like this one against the Rockies, he always looks like he’s having the time of his life (which checks out, seeing as he’s paid to play baseball in Miami). This bat drop followed a big home run into the upper deck of loanDepot park (really, that’s the name we’re going with?), and put the Marlins ahead by a sizable lead early in the contest, one that they ultimately hung on to by the end of the night. Jazz’s post-homer celebration was another suitable addition to his growing highlight reel, as he holds onto his bat long enough just to spike it in the dirt. Well done.
6/11 — Christian Arroyo vs. Carl Edwards Jr.
https://gfycat.com/lighthearteduglyamericanmarten
403ft, 104.4 mph, 37° LA
Look at that! Christian Arroyo became the first non-Tatis player to be featured with two monster bat flips in the same week, with this one coming against the Blue Jays and Carl Edwards. After pulverizing the 1-0 heater, Arroyo took his sweet time walking down to first base, stunting after having tied the game in the late innings. After a few steps, Arroyo lofted his bat high into the air, energizing the Fenway faithful and capping off another excellent week of bat flips around the league.
6/13 — Fernando Tatis Jr. vs. Jacob Barnes
https://gfycat.com/definitecelebratedcow
444ft, 112.2 mph, 22° LA
Of course, here’s your weekly dose of Fernando Tatis Jr. doing Fernando Tatis Jr. things. This bat flip victim was none other than New York’s (now Toronto’s) Jacob Barnes, who served up a grand slam to the young phenom. The rocket was enough to make even Tatis pause, staring for a few moments before coming back to Earth to unleash a wicked bat toss. It almost looked as if Tatis was still processing how he absolutely destroyed that baseball, only missing the spinning pinwheel of a Mac computer for the full effect. It’s a blast, Tatis is a beast, and there’s nothing really new there. Just sit back and enjoy one of the premier talents of the generation terrorize major league pitching with a smile on your face.
6/22 — Yasmani Grandal vs. Tyler Anderson
https://gfycat.com/thatmealyamphiuma
409ft, 104.9 mph, 32° LA
Yasmani Grandal reminded us why he’s the best bat-dropper in baseball with this moonshot to dead center off of Tyler Anderson. Grandal has his quick release down to a science, wasting no time in pimping his swing. That ball’s not coming back, and he (and everyone in the park) knew it. Seeya.
6/25 — Fernando Tatis Jr. vs. Corbin Martin
https://gfycat.com/seriousimaginaryhart
400ft, 111.9 mph, 34° LA
Fernando Tatis Jr.’s first three-home run game of his career also came with two of his strongest bat flips to date. The first blow came in the very first inning, moments after Tatis’ teammate Tommy Pham went yard to open the scoring against the D-Backs’ Corbin Martin. Tatis absolutely demolished this 1-1 changeup, which proved to be the hardest-hit ball of the game at a scorching 111.9 miles per hour. He then uncorked a wicked flip before donning the Padres’ now-iconic “Swagg Chain” for the first time that evening.
6/25 — Fernando Tatis Jr. vs. Riley Smith
https://gfycat.com/bluebittercrow
415ft, 109.2 mph, 27° LA
But wait, there’s more! If the first Tatis toss wasn’t enough excitement for you, the phenom followed it up with an even wilder flip following his third home run of the evening (in just the fourth inning!). This one came at the expense of Riley Smith, who came on in an attempt to limit the damage following Corbin Martin‘s rough start. Unfortunately for Arizona, it just added fuel to Tatis’ fire which raged on with this flip, higher and further than the first.
6/27 — Taylor Trammell vs. Liam Hendriks
https://gfycat.com/eminenthighbarbet
387ft, 104.8 mph, 37° LA
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, Taylor Trammell comes along to flip the bat flipping world on its head. The exciting young outfielder came up in the biggest of moments for the Mariners, in a tied game with two outs in the top of the ninth against one of baseball’s most ruthless closers. Trammell celebrated accordingly, giving us not one, but two bat flips on the same play. He first flips the head of the bat back into his hands, before tossing it overhand towards his teammates in the visitors’ dugout. It was a bit of a gambit and a win-win for the fans, because if he had dropped the bat it would have possibly been one of the funniest clips of the season. However, Trammell pulled it off perfectly, punching his ticket to the end-of-season Bat Flip Thunderdome. The only downside here was the lack of camera angles to capture the celebration in its entirety.
6/29 — Jesse Winker vs. Nabil Crismatt
https://gfycat.com/enragedrespectfulamericancrayfish
410ft, 101.1 mph, 29° LA
Jesse Winker continued his rampage against National League pitching with a two-run bomb against Padres’ reliever Nabil Crismatt, punishing a 1-0 breaking ball left up in the zone. The National League All-Star starter then unleashed a killer bat flip, sending his lumber flying out of his hands and into the grass feet away.
6/30 — Josh Donaldson vs. Dylan Cease
https://gfycat.com/freshdensefossa
409ft, 109.0 mph, 38° LA
Josh Donaldson struck another blow in his war against pitchers with this blast against Dylan Cease and the White Sox last month. A no-doubter off the bat, Donaldson dropped the stick like a hot skillet and watched the ball as it landed halfway up the left field bleachers. He took his first few steps backwards down the first base line, all the while licking his lips for an uncomfortably long period of time.
Alright, now it’s your turn! It’s time to vote on the Best Bat Flip of June!
Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)
June was a GREAT month for bat flips. I love the Jazz Chisholm and Josh Donaldson flips, it’s like they are in awe, they can’t believe what they’ve just done. Tatis’s last one is the nastiest, but I think the winner for me is that Taylor Trammell one. We got two bat flips in one basically!
I dunno, not sure I can condone that amount of tongue action from Donaldson