The Oakland Athletics had a budding star in Josh Donaldson, a Third Baseman, who was an All-Star in 2014 and finished in the top ten in MVP voting the past two years.  Knowing that Donaldson would soon command a higher price, the Athletics traded him for multiple players, resulting in one of the best deals in Toronto history.

The Blue Jays felt they were on the cusp of a special team and went all in with the Donaldson trade.  He rewarded their faith with an MVP season, where he smacked 41 Home Runs, led the American League in Runs (122) and RBIs (123), and secured his first Silver Slugger.  Toronto made it to the ALCS, a lot of which was due to Donaldson.

Donaldson was again the anchor in 2016 for Toronto’s return to the ALCS, where he went to his third straight All-Star Game with a 37 Home Run/99 RBI year and a fourth-place MVP finish.  After another good year in 2017 (33 HR/78 RBI), Toronto was a team that was struggling, and they dealt their star Third Baseman to Cleveland.

With Toronto, Donaldson batted .281 with 492 Hits and 116 Home Runs.

Taken with the Second Overall Pick in 1978, Lloyd Moseby chose baseball over basketball, a sport he received over 50 scholarship offers to play.  

Moseby made the Jays quickly, debuting in 1980, and was the lead Centerfielder shortly after.  A capable defensive player, Moseby used his speed in the field and on the bases, swiping 255 for Toronto and leading the AL in Triples (15) in 1984.  

As the Blue Jays improved, Moseby was the Centerfielder of what many up North thought was the best Outfield in Baseball, along with George Bell ad Jesse Barfield.  Moseby helped the Jays make their first postseason in 1985 and was an All-Star for the only time the following season.  

Moseby’s output slowed as the decade ended, and he signed with the Detroit Tigers after the 1989 Season.  With the Jays, Moseby had 1,319 Hits with 149 Home Runs, and is a member of the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.

Juan Guzman signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers as an Amateur Free Agent in 1985, but two years later, while still in the low Minors, he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays.  He finally made his way up to the Majors in 1991, where he went 10-3 and was a distant second to Minnesota's Chuck Knoblauch.

Over the next two seasons, Guzman was part of an electrifying team that won the 1992 and 1993 World Series Championships, and he went 30-8 over that time.  Guzman finished seventh in Cy Young voting, and it looked like it was the start of something special for the Pitcher, but it was not to be.

Guzman struggled in 1994 and 1995, posting ERAs of 5.68 and 6.32, respectively, with WHIPs over 1.6.  It looked like it might be over for Guzman, but he rebounded in 1996, winning the ERA Title (2.93) while also leading the AL in ERA+ (171), WHIP (1.124), H/9 (7.6) and SO/BB (3.11).  Amazingly, he did not receive any Cy Young votes.

Guzman struggled again the year after and was traded mid-season to Baltimore.  With the Blue Jays, Guzman went 76 and 62 with 1,030 Strikeouts.

Roger Clemens was only a Toronto Blue Jay for two seasons, and though sports history forgets this, his two-year performance in Canada was one of the best back-to-back regular seasons in MLB history.

Before Clemens signed with the Blue Jays, he was the young superstar for the Boston Red Sox.  Clemens was, at that point, a 13-year veteran, but his skills looked to have eroded.  Toronto thought otherwise, and while we can look at potential PED use by Clemens, it was a colossal return to greatness by the Pitcher and what arguably placed him in HOF contention.

Clemens signed with the Blue Jays after the 1996 Season, and many in Boston thought that their division rivals had made a mistake.  The flamethrower reclaimed his past glory, and though Toronto was no longer a World Series contender, Clemens reclaimed his spot as the top Pitcher in the American League.

Clemens won the Pitcher's Triple Crown in 1996 and 1997 and was the Cy Young winner in both seasons.  He also led the AL in ERA+ and FIP in both years, and was first in WHIP in 1996.  There has never been a Jays Pitcher before or since who had back-to-back seasons this good.  The problem for Clemens was that there was no similar talent around him, and the Jays were not threats to challenge for a Pennant while he was there.

Following the ’97 campaign, Clemens asked to be traded to a contender, and his wish was granted when the Jays traded him to the Yankees.

In his two-year stay in Toronto, Clemens had a bWAR over 20 with a 41-13 record.