Jurriën timber Chris Bassitt played the hero to retrieve his teammate’s lumber
Published Jun 11, 2024 • Last updated Jun 11, 2024 • 2 minute read
The bat of Toronto Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hangs stuck in the net above the dugout after his swing in the fourth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers. Getty Images As far as metaphors go, this one really hit the sweet spot.
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Unfortunately, this is also one of the few times you can use the words “sweet spot” and “Blue Jays bat” together so far in this frustrating season.
During the fourth inning of Monday night’s loss to the Brewers in Milwaukee, Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lost grip of his bat while fouling off a pitch, sending the lumber flying into the protective netting high above the visiting team’s dugout where it got stuck in the net.
Guerrero completed the plate appearance by grounding out to second with a new bat.
It took a couple innings, a brainstorming session and some effort to get the bat back in hands of the home run derby champ.
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“I knew after the game I was going to get the bat at some point, but all my teammates were asking me if I really wanted it back, if I wanted to use it,” Guerrero said through a translator after the 3-1 loss to the Brewers. “I said, ‘Yes, I would like to use it.’ So they did a great job of getting it back.”
It wasn’t an easy process, it turns out.
“We either watch it or we do something about it,” Jays clubhouse manager Mustafa Hassan said. “So we did something about it. It took a big collaboration. Quite a few guys came up with ideas.”
Hassan said Brewers visiting clubhouse manager Phil Rozewicz gave the team a large metal rod that was adjustable — able to extend to about 20 feet or so – and had a hook on the end of it.
After numerous unsuccessful attempts at dislodging the bat from the netting – which did its intended job of protecting fans from flying objects — pitcher Chris Bassitt said outfielder Kevin Kiermaier came up with the idea to put a ring of tape around the hook.
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During the sixth inning, Bassitt played the hero and was able to get the bat off the net, seeing it slip through the tape ring and land on the dugout roof to a round of applause from fans in the stands.
“It sucks that (Vladdy’s hanging bat) was the most entertaining part of the game.”
– John Schneider
“I knew I was going to get it back at some point. My teammates asked if I wanted to use that bat, and I said yes. They did a great job to get it back”
– Vladdy Guerrero Jr pic.twitter.com/zIgmtYbwbb
— Hazel Mae (@thehazelmae) June 11, 2024 Article content
“We kind of missed a couple of times, but I guess the third or fourth time was the lucky charm,” Hassan said.
The whole ordeal was perhaps the most exciting part of the night for the Jays hitters. The team generated a single run off four hits against the hosts. Guerrero Jr., who was able to use the retrieved bat for his final two plate appearances, went 0-4 on the night.
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