Freddy Galvis was slated to don number “19” in his first season with the Blue Jays, the 29-year old was attempting to pay homage to his fellow countryman Marco Scutaro, who spent two seasons with the Blue Jays.
The infielder soon had second thoughts after realizing the number had been worn by slugger Jose Bautista for a decade north of the border. Bautista was a polarizing figure and captivated a nation with a single flip of his bat in 2015, the slugger walloped 288 homers during his tenure in Toronto. Galvis gave this reasoning for the switch:
“Bautista did an amazing job with Toronto … I respect the guy and the job he did for Toronto and I decided not to use that number, for my part, I have to show some respect to him because he’s a really good player and just left that number.