Blue Jays: Where does Jose Bautista rank among right fielders over the past decade?

The MLB Network recently ranked the top right fielders over the past decade and former Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista was right near the top.

Brian Kenny and Chris “Mad Dog” Russo of the MLB Network hosted a recent segment where the pair presented their respective cases for the top right fielder in the past 10 years. Russo opted for Jose Bautista atop his list while Kenny ranked Joey Bats in the second spot behind Giancarlo Stanton on his compilation.

Russo admitted that he decidedly went with Bautista due to his propensity for big games and big hits but said it was very close with Stanton. The list contains stars from yesteryear coupled with current stars making it a tricky list to rank properly.

Bautista (38.5) sits just behind Stanton (39.2) in WAR totals over the last decade while Mookie Betts (35.2) appears set to overtake Bautista in 2019. The four through ten spots are occupied by Jason Heyward (34.9), Nelson Cruz (32.1), Shin-Soo Choo (28.5), Bryce Harper (27.4), Hunter Pence (24.0), Josh Reddick (24.0) and Carlos Gonzalez (23.6) rounding out the list.

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Kenny’s selection of Hunter Pence in the third spot is somewhat of a head-scratcher, Pence surely belongs in the Top 10 but I am not sure he is top three. Mind you, Jay Bruce would not be on my list at all and Russo had him batting in the seven hole.

Russo did not include new age talents like George Springer, Mookie Betts or Aaron Judge, instead opting for players with a longer track record in Carlos Beltran, Carlos Gonzalez and surprisingly Jay Bruce.

For me personally, Bautista would be number one on my list as well after having a front row seat to his repeated heroics for the past decade. Bautista hit .253/.372/.506 with 288 homers during his time in Toronto and will one-day be enshrined on the Blue Jays Level of Excellence.