Jose Bautista Shoots Down Report He's Demanding Five-Year, $150 Million Deal

Jose Bautista is apparently not demanding the Toronto Blue Jays pay him $150 million over the life of a five-year contract extension. The Internet exploded on Tuesday when reports leaked that Bautista was demanding that ludicrous deal, but the 35-year-old slugger has denied them.

This wouldn’t be the first time that a team leaked exorbitant contract amount to make the player it is negotiating with look unreasonable. And yes, $30 million per year for a player in his age 36 to 40 seasons is completely unreasonable.

Since his second full season in Toronto during the 2010 campaign, Bautista has been among baseball’s best sluggers. He has been an All-Star in each of those six seasons, while averaging nearly 38 home runs, 97 RBI and hitting .268. He led all of baseball in home runs during the 2010 and 2011 seasons, won the Hank Aaron Award in both of those years and has three Silver Slugger Awards (2010, 2011 and 2014).

In 2015, Bautista hit 40 home runs, drove in 110 runs and hit .250 while leading the Blue Jays to the American League Championship Series. They lost to Kansas City, who went on to win the World Series. Still, Bautista also had arguably the greatest bat flip of all-time, so who was really the champion of the 2015 season?

Bautista is a huge part of what the Blue Jays do between the lines, but he’s also a big part of things off-the-field. He’s the team’s most recognizable player and has been deeply involved in the rebirth of that franchise. They simply can’t let him walk away.

Obviously his contract demands must be reasonable to get something done, but he should finish his career in Toronto. It would be sad to see him wind up elsewhere.