Even though the Toronto Blue Jays are named after an animal, starting pitcher Chris Bassitt probably didn’t anticipate being the subject of a nature documentary when he signed for the team.
But as narrated by his teammate Erik Swanson, that’s exactly where Bassitt found himself on Thursday afternoon.
Bassitt was the loser of the team’s fantasy football league this past season and was forced to operate as the team’s bat boy for their first spring training matchup last week.
And channelling his inner David Attenborough, Swanson narrated a mockumentary about Bassitt’s first day on the new job.
“In this new season of the Toronto Blue Jays, we travel to the most astonishing wild places,” Swanson said. “Here lies Chris Bassitt, a grass-fed tall and lanky giraffe, a seasoned veteran that has withstand the bumps and the grinds of a baseball season over many, many moons.”
The video also showcased Bassitt’s temporary new jersey number, a 4-10 to signify his record in the fantasy football league.
“While pitchers can get around perfectly well in the field, they’re most at home on the mound, where their talented arm hurtles balls at velocities that one might miss with the blink of an eye,” Swanson continued. “Skilled in their profession, these warriors of the diamond compete as much off the field as they do on the field, a collection of brothers bonding over mythical management of the battlers on the gridiron… or one might know it as fantasy football.”
“For every winner of fantasy, there is one loser, and with that comes a formidable punishment agreed upon by the jousters of the league. As Chris embarks upon another season, he must pause his pursuits and serve as the bat boy for the first match of spring training. This is what happens when you don’t play the waiver wire right,” Swanson concluded the video.
While it’s still up in the air how the Jays will perform this season, it’s clear that the players themselves seem to be having a grand old time with one another.