On This Day: Rougned Odor's biggest hit against the Jays is heard 'round the world

Eight years ago, a chip on the shoulder led to a punch in the face. And the event was a second chapter in the story of a simmering rivalry.

During the eighth inning of a May 15, 2016 game, Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor punched Toronto Blue Jays outfielder and franchise icon Jose Bautista in the face. Clips of the punch exploded online in social media, and pictures popped up everywhere. A mural of Odor's punch was even painted on the side of a taco shop in Arlington, Texas.

Before the punch, Rangers reliever Matt Bush started off the top of the eighth by hitting Bautista with his first pitch. Then, after Edwin Encarnacion flew out, Jake Diekman replaced Bush on the mound. Diekman got the next hitter, Justin Smoak, to hit a groundball to Adrian Beltre at third base. Running to second base, Bautista slid hard into Odor, who was attempting to turn Beltre's throw into a double play. Bautista's slide caused Odor to short-hop his throw to first. Tempers flared, a fistfight started, and Odor then connected with Bautista's jaw. Both benches cleared.

Order was restored a few minutes later. Smoak was called out at first after umpires ruled that Bautista's slide violated the then-new rule about breaking up double plays. Odor and Bautista were ejected. Blue Jays pitcher Jesse Chavez threw at Prince Fielder in the bottom of the inning, and was ejected along with coach DeMarlo Hale since warnings were issued to the teams earlier.

Major League Baseball handed out a series of suspensions, including a one-game suspension for Bautista and an eight-game ban for Odor that was eventually reduced to seven. Chavez and Jays manager John Gibbons were each suspended for three games, while Toronto coach Tim Leiper and Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus were each suspended for a game. A number of fines were also handed out, including one for Bush for hitting Bautista.

Bautista had plenty to say after the game, adding he was "surprised" by Odor's punch. Or maybe he meant he was surprised that Odor actually made contact, considering Odor is a career .230 hitter. Bautista told reporters that it would take "a little bit bigger man to knock me down," and calling the Rangers' decision to hit him with a pitch "cowardly." Bautista saw it as retaliation for his famous "bat flip" home run of a year earlier, when highlighted the Blue Jays come-from-behind Division Series win over Texas.

After ending its long playoff drought, Toronto finally saw the postseason in 2015 by virtue of winning its first AL East title since 1993. The Blue Jays lost the first two games of the best-of-five Division Series at the Rogers Centre, but rallied to win both games in Texas. Then came the winner-take-all Game 5, which was highlighted by Bautista's iconic seventh-inning blast. The Rangers voiced displeasure about the bat flip, but they seemed to be in the minority.

Of course, the story didn't end with Odor's punch. The Blue Jays Rangers rivalry became a trilogy with a part three in October 2016 when the two teams met again in the Division Series. This time, it was a first-round knockout for Toronto, as the Jays swept Texas in three games. The Rangers attempted to turn a double play in the ninth inning of Game 3, but Odor short-hopped his throw from second base, allowing Josh Donaldson to race home with the series-clinching run.

As a result of the series, another Blue Jays Rangers image became popular online. This was of a fan-made sign that was displayed at the game that read, "I would rather get punched in May than get knocked out in October."

And like most stories, how it ends is key. Odor is currently on the 7-day Injured List in the New York Yankees minor league system. Bautista became the newest member of the Blue Jays Level of Excellence in 2023.