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Jose Bautista -- late bloomer, Mets leadoff hitter and Clint Hurdle's former landlord

NEW YORK — Jose Bautista had just concluded his breakout 2010 season — 54 home runs, 100 walks, the first of six consecutive All-Star appearances at age 29 — when manager Clint Hurdle made his way to Pittsburgh and needed a place to stay. Bautista hadn’t played for the Pirates since 2008, but he still had a home there.

“My first place that I laid my head down in Pittsburgh for about three months, I rented his furnished house in Shaler,” Hurdle said. “He was my landlord.”

Now 37, Bautista is in the final act of his career.