Welcome back to the 2020 Bat Flip THUNDERDOME, where we’ve been thinning the pack all week and are down to the best four bat flips of the 2020 season. If this is your first time voting with us, you can also check out the previous matchups here:
Now the moment you’ve all been waiting for, the updated bracket:
by Doug Carlin (@Bdougals on Twitter)
And because it’s early, here’s a refresher on the rules of the tournament:
- You will be voting on the best batting celebration, which includes the bat flip/drop as well as anything the hitter does running down the first base line (e.g. snapping a selfie, yelling at the dugouts, etc.)
- You can only vote on a matchup once, so make sure you pick the one you absolutely want.
- Voting will continue until 12:00 a.m. EST the following morning.
We’re down to just four contenders left! Who will advance to the championship? You decide!
Willson Contreras vs. Ji-Man Choi
Willson Contreras probably had the only *easy* matchup last round, in the sense that he dominated the voting with 79% of the ballots. His stratospheric bat flip looks to continue to climb in the tournament, but it will have to fly over Ji-Man Choi’s thunderous performance in Game 5 of the ALCS to advance. Choi’s home run came in a pivotal spot against Josh James and the Astros in the playoffs and gave way to an even more exciting celebration when Choi flicked his bat into the air after taking some time to admire his blast. Only one will make it out of here with their championship hopes intact, so vote now!
https://gfycat.com/narrowhighlevelconey
VS.
https://gfycat.com/constantcomplexamericanwarmblood
Cody Bellinger vs. Fernando Tatís Jr.
Two titans of the NL West square off once more in our Flashy Four, as the sweet swing of Cody Bellinger faces off against the electric factory that is Fernando Tatís Jr. Both home runs came with their teams’ seasons on the line and gave us two of the most iconic bat flips of the playoffs. Bellinger’s blast came at the expense of the splintering Atlanta bullpen and was the final nail in the coffin for a team that at one point held a 3-1 lead in the NLDS over the future champs. What Bellinger lacked in over-the-top theatrics, he made up for in a strut oozing in swagger and style. Then, to top it all off, he popped his arm out of its socket by getting too hyped on the celebration once he reached the dugout. He faces off against one of the game’s most prolific bat flip artists in Fernando Tatís Jr., who gave us one to remember when he unleashed a monstrous flip after almost singlehandedly bringing San Diego back from the brink of an early elimination in the Wild Card series against the Cardinals. Throw in the ice-cold stare into his own dugout, and the slow and deliberate walk down the line, and you’ve got one of the nastiest bat flips we’ve seen all year. This is going to be a tough one. Luckily, it’s on you to figure it out. Let’s vote!
https://gfycat.com/glumassureddodo
VS.
https://gfycat.com/complicatedbruisedcowbird
We are down to the wire here, folks. Be sure to represent your favorites in the comment section and on Twitter, and don’t forget to check in tomorrow to crown our 2020 champion. See you then!
(Photo by Adam Davis/Icon Sportswire) | Adapted by Doug Carlin (@Bdougals on Twitter)