Bautista one of many 'anti-heroes' in Toronto sports

There are not many Jose Bautista fans outside of Toronto.

For all the love the now 35-year-old (his birthday is today) gets from Blue Jays fans across Canada, especially after hitting one of the greatest home runs in franchise history less than a week ago, he gets equal, if not more dislike from most baseball fans down south.

From flipping his bat and starring down pitchers to complaining to umpires and pretending to throw baseballs to rival fans, Bautista has a way of getting on nerves.   

He's the perfect example of a player you love to have on your team, but hate to play against. If the Pittsburgh Pirates decided to trade Bautista to the Kansas City Royals in 2008 instead of the Jays, rest assured a lot of Toronto sports fans wouldn’t have a lot of nice things to say about Bautista, not just because of the overwhelming swagger, but because he delivers when it matters most.    

Toronto has a history of loving the so called "anti-heroes" who happen to play for their teams.

Doug Gilmour

Doug Gilmour, who was nicknamed "Killer" for his intensity and gritty attitude on the ice, is arguably the most beloved Toronto Maple Leaf ever. 

At just 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds, Gilmour endeared himself to the Maple Leafs faithful for being their best player during the Leafs' run to the conference finals in 1993 and 1994. He could score in bunches and knock people around, a combination Toronto sports fans cannot resist.

Those exact same qualities made him a guy opposing players and fans couldn't stand. He was like a mixture of Mats Sundin and Darcy Tucker all rolled up into one.

Some thought he played dirty at times and probably rolled their eyes every time Don Cherry fawned over him during Coach’s Corner on Hockey Night in Canada. Gilmour had his haters for sure, but has there even been a Toronto athlete more praised and respected?

Charles Oakley

Charles Oakley will be remembered as a New York Knick, but over his three years in Toronto (1998-2001) Oakley helped put the Raptors on the basketball map as a team that could play tough and should be respected.

Before Oakley was traded to Toronto in 1998, the Raptors were a team that had never made a playoff appearance and were in need of a veteran presence. Oakley came in and brought the thunder for a young Raps team that featured Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady. Oakley was a great rebounder and wasn't afraid to put opposing players on their back when the time was right. 

Oakley was suspended and fined by the NBA in 2000 for punching Los Angeles Clippers guard Jeff McInnis at a shootaround over a personal dispute and then went after Philadelphia 76ers' Tyrone Hill, also at a shootaround, due to a gambling debt a few months later. 

Raptors fans loved his intensity and he was a crowd favourite over his short Toronto tenure. On the other hand, fans in other cities thought he was a dirty player who was reckless.

Dave Stieb

Dave Stieb was one of the most outspoken Blue Jays in the team's history.

Stieb pitched 14 seasons for the Jays (1979-1992 and 1998) and is the franchise leader in wins (175), ERA (3.42) and strikeouts (1,658). He was known for being a fiery competitor on the mound who would yell at himself, umpires, and players, sometimes ones on his own team after an error was made.

Stieb, the man to throw the Jays one and only no-hitter, was cocky and didn't care how others felt about it. 

If the native of Santa Ana, Calif., played for the New York Yankees, Jays’ fans would have found him deplorable.

Stieb wasn't the type of player you would advise a youngster to look-up to, but he backed up the swagger with his ability on the mound. And that's why Toronto loved him.

Who knows the legacy Bautista will leave behind him in Toronto, but he's on the path to become one of Toronto's most praised atheltes, even if nobody else likes him.