Photo Courtesy / Jessica Lee

Jose Bautista is having a breakout year. It currently places him seven home runs ahead of five-time all-star Miguel Cabrera, with 35.This success is surprising to fans who have witnessed Bautista hit 0-16 home runs a season. His 43 since April is almost triple what he had at last seasons end.

The Blue Jays haven’t seen a bat this hot since Carlos Delgado hit 44 homers in 1999 or George Bell hit 47 in ‘87  Although Aaron Hill and Adam Lind impressed last season, Bautista has excited a city with rumblings of league MVP.

Bautista, like many before him, is now being accused of doping. It’s a touchy subject, if it rings true, his relationship with fans could be over.

The Toronto Star is only fuelling the fire of these most unproven of claims against the league’s leading hitter.

For a writer to accuse an athlete of doping based on achievement alone is ludicrous. But, not surprisingly, this is what Damien Cox of The Star has done. He brought the subject of doping up to go hand-in-hand with Bautista’s success.

“My favourite line was always how steroids couldn’t help a baseball player hit home runs. Too funny,” said Cox in his sports column.

Cox suggests that Bautista is not talented enough, or focused enough to be able to work as hard as he needed to get to where he is now. In Cox’s opinion, the only possible way for Bautista to have a record season is with steroids.

Many players have come to Bautista’s defense, including Aaron Hill. He expressed his disbelief in Cox’s statement to Sportsnet, commenting that he “sees how hard Bautista works and the time he puts in. It’s discouraging to not only Bautista, but to the Jays organization.”

To taint Bautista’s success with accusations of doping is an attack on the work habits of the coaches, the manager, and the team. Damien Cox doesn’t watch Bautista spend hours correcting his swing, his timing, his fielding.

To question Bautista’s integrity, his will to be the best without doping, and the integrity of every coach and player on the team is too far. And Cox knew that.

The claim is simply a ploy to bring attention to his column. Until some sort of confession comes from his mouth, this city should stand behind our MVP.