Home run ball from Jose Bautista’s infamous bat-flip up for auction

The home run ball Jose Bautista deposited into the deep left field stands — after which he unleashed the “Bat Flip Heard ‘Round The World” — during Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS between the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers is up for auction.

Bautista’s epic three-run shot — of course punctuated by the now-iconic bat flip — broke a 3-3 tie in the 7th inning and propelled the Blue Jays to a series-clinching 6-3 victory.

3 years ago today, the bat flip heard around the world by Jose Bautista in game 5 of the ALDS pic.twitter.com/VsCcU8QeD9

— Baseball King™ (@BasebaIlKing) October 14, 2018

Toronto’s CTV reports that after starting with a reserve of $3,500, the bid on the ball has reached $14,000, far exceeding projections.

Any takers? The ball from Jose Bautista’s bat flip homerun in the 2015 ALDS is up for auction. Opening bid is $3,500 US, it’s expected to sell for around $8,000. pic.twitter.com/XowFCwOpiE

— Richard Southern (@richard680news) January 4, 2019

The consignor of the ball has remained anonymous, but did express hope that auction results with the item being owned by a Canadian.

“When it gets to that high-dollar amount, I hope there’s somebody in Canada that sees the importance of it being here,” said the spokesperson for the small group that owns the ball. “We made the decision to take some of the money and make a donation to Robbie Alomar’s foundation. We want to keep the ball safe here and if not, we’re going to give some money to them and let them do what they do.

“But I hope a big business or a big CEO steps up and buys it and puts it on display for the fans. That’s what we really want. We want it to come back here and let the fans see it.”

The auction for the home run ball, run by Lelands, closes Friday.