Ex-A’s slugger Canha names bat flip vs. Phillies best of career originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Mark Canha did it again.
The longtime Athletics slugger, now in his first season with the New York Mets, dropped a legendary bat flip Sunday to celebrate a go-ahead two-run home run in the ninth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.
It was Canha’s second homer of the game, the first being a three-run, game-tying blast in the seventh inning.
The Mets went on to beat the Phillies 10-8.
Following the game, Canha ranked that bat flip as the best of his career, which is saying a lot considering his long resume of bat flips across seven seasons in an A’s uniform.
“That was the best one because it was in a good moment,” Canha said Sunday. “… The moment, the timing is all a part of it. It’s kind of spur of the moment.”
Canha launched a few bats into orbit while in Oakland. In the opening week of the 2019 MLB season, Canha floated his bat towards the A’s dugout after crushing a home run against the Los Angeles Angels. That was later named the best bat flip of the entire 2019 season by MLB Network.
Canha also made headlines by unapologetically bat flipping during the 2018 Bay Bridge Series against the San Francisco Giants. That dinger gave the A’s a 4-3 lead over the Giants, which caught a bit of backlash in the eyes of baseball traditionalists.
However, Canha refused to apologize.
“People getting offended by bat flips is so silly. I’m not sorry,” Canha said in 2018. “I’m not really sorry. It’s part of our game. Everybody does it. If someone is going to throw at me for doing it — I’ve gotten thrown at in the past for bat flipping — I clearly didn’t learn my lesson.
“So, if you’re offended by that, I don’t care.”
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Only disgruntled Phillies fans could have been upset at Canha’s perfect bat flip Sunday night.
Aside from bat flips, Canha is putting together a solid season with the Mets, batting .275/.374/.410 with 10 home runs in 103 games. Entering Monday’s games, Canha’s Mets have a four-game cushion in the NL East with a 79-44 record.