Top 50 Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays joined the American League in 1977, becoming the second Canadian team to join the Majors, and are currently the only ones.
First making the playoffs in 1985, the Blue Jays brought the World Series outside the United States in 1992 and were repeat champions in 1993.
They have been to the post-season sparingly since but are Canada's team. No other MLB organization can say that they own a country.
This list is up to the end of the 2023 regular season.
Note: Baseball lists are based on an amalgamation of tenure, traditional statistics, advanced statistics, playoff statistics, and post-season accolades.
Dave Stieb barely beat out Roy Halladay for the top spot on this list, and it does fit to have Stieb at number one, as he was arguably the first real star of the franchise. Stieb made his first appearance for the Jays in 1979 and was their ace a year later, going to his first of seven All-Star Games. In the first half of the 80s, Toronto was dealing with the typical issues of an expansion team, and it likely cost Stieb a 20-win season, as it is conceivable that on a better team, his back-to-back 17 Win years (1982…
We considered making this a 1 and 1A situation with Roy Halladay and Dave Stieb, but that just isn't our style, so Halladay missed out as the greatest Blue Jay, despite the Cooperstown plaque and the Cy Young. A First Round Pick in 1995, Halladay first made the Blue Jays in 1998, but as hard as he threw, his effectiveness wasn't there, and he was bouncing back and forth between the Majors and Minors until 2002. Once Halladay figured it all out, he became one of the best hurlers in Baseball. "Doc" led the American League in Innings Pitched in '02,…
Jose Bautista's success in emerging as one of the game's top power hitters might be one of the biggest “Where the hell did this come from?” stories in Baseball. Bautista was barely even a journeyman, playing briefly for Baltimore, Tampa Bay. and Kansas City before having a respectable season in 2007 as a Pittsburgh Pirate. The Blue Jays traded for him during the 2008 Season, and Bautista began 2009 as the fourth Outfielder. He worked all year with Toronto's hitting coach, Dwayne Murphy, who helped him work on his stance and leg kick. It yielded a coming out part in…
An Amateur Free Agent signee in 1988, Puerto Rico’s Carlos Delgado first made the Blue Jays roster in 1993, but it was not until 1996 that he was an everyday player at First. Delgado began a ten-year streak of at least 30 Home Runs in 1997 (though the last two were with other teams), and three of those seasons saw the slugger exceed 100. A bona fide run generator, Delgado drove in at least 100 runners six times with Toronto, including a league-leading 145 in 2003. That was his best season in the Majors, where he was second in MVP voting, won…
Tony Fernandez was scouted and signed by the Toronto Blue Jays and made his Major League debut in 1983. As the Jays improved in the mid-80s, the Dominican Shortstop was one of their stalwarts. From 1985 to 1988, he would receive MVP votes, showing off firm contact, hitting, and defense. In all of those four seasons, Fernandez was named a Gold Glove winner, and he would at least bat .280 with 160 Hits. An All-Star for the Blue Jays three times, he was dealt to the San Diego Padres in a major trade after the 1990 season, and Fernandez was an All-Star for…
Jimmy Key began his career with Toronto in 1984, where he was used as a Relief Pitcher, recording ten Saves, but the Jays management viewed him as a starter, which is the capacity he served for the rest of his 14 Seasons in Baseball. The Southpaw was an All-Star in his first year as a Starting Pitcher, winning 14 Games against 6 Losses and helping the Blue Jays make their first postseason. Key would methodically work his way to the top of the Toronto rotation, winning the ERA Title (2.76) and WHIP Title (1.057) in 1987 while finishing second in Cy…
Pat Hentgen first made the Majors with Toronto in 1991, appearing in three Games, and in Toronto's first World Series winning season in 1992, he was in 28 Games but was not on the playoff roster. That would all change in 1993. Hentgen made the starting rotation out of training camp and was named to the All-Star team. Going 19-9 in the regular season, Hentgen helped the Jays win their second straight World Series, with the righthander gaining a Win. The Jays imploded after, with many stars leaving, but the young Pitcher remained, a highlight on a rebuilding mid-90s team. An All-Star again…
Vernon Wells was the fifth pick taken in the 1997 Amateur Draft, and the Blue Jays slowly moved up the native of Shreveport to where he was a bona fide starting Outfielder in 2002. Wells had a breakout year in 2003, where not only did he go to the All-Star Game, he led the AL in Hits (215) and Doubles (49) while posting career-highs in Home Runs (33), RBIs (117) and the Slash Line (.317/.359/.550). He would also go to his first All-Star Game, and Wells earned a Silver Slugger with an eighth-place finish in MVP voting. Wells continued over the…
With all due respect to Fred McGriff and Tony Fernandez, two incredible players, the acquisition that sent them for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter was the transaction that made Toronto. Carter was the one who hit the most famous Home Run in Blue Jays history, but Alomar was the true gem of the deal. In the five seasons that Alomar was with Toronto, there was no doubt that he was the top Second Baseball in the American League, both with his bat and glove. Alomar went to the All-Star Game and won the Gold Glove in all of his Jays campaigns, and…
The Philadelphia Phillies first signed George Bell in 1978, but the Blue Jays nabbed him in the Rule 5 Draft, forcing Bell to play his entire season in the Majors, arguably before he was ready. After a season-and-a-half in the Minors, Bell was called up for good to play in Leftfield as Toronto's starter, and he quickly turned heads with his power. Bell hit 26 Home Runs in his first full year and 28 the year after when the Blue Jays made it to their first postseason. After another year of improvement (1986, 31 HR, 108 RBI, .309), where he was fourth…
Taken in the Ninth Round of Toronto's first ever Amateur Draft in 1977, Jesse Barfield would first make the Blue Jays in 1981 and was a fixture on the roster the year after, but it was not until the 1985 season that Barfield was a bonafide everyday starter in Rightfield. Barfield was an excellent fielder and a good power-hitter, and in his previously mentioned '85 Season, he finished seventh in MVP voting, with a 27 Home Run year with 189 Hits. The year after, Barfield went to his only All-Star Game, becoming the first Blue Jay to lead the AL in…
Before his mid-2009 trade from Cincinnati, Edwin Encarnacion was a non-descript player with a lot of power but bordering on one-dimensional. This was the player that Toronto wanted when they traded Scott Rolen at the trading deadline, and they would eventually be proven right. After an inconsistent 2010 Season, Oakland claimed Encarnacion off of waivers but was non-tendered, allowing him to test free agency. The Jays signed him back, and the patience began to pay off. Encarnacion was never a great fielder, and by mid-2011, he played mainly as a Designated Hitter. He finally broke out in 2012, blasting 42 Home Runs, with…
The ranking of Joe Carter is complex, and it feels like there is always one player in every Top 50 where this occurs. Hopefully, we can explain. Before the 1991 Season, Carter was traded from San Diego for Fred McGriff and Tony Fernandez in a deal that brought over future Hall of Fame Second Baseman Roberto Alomar. Carter brought the Jays power, winning two Silver Sluggers for Toronto and 203 Home Runs over seven seasons with 736 RBIs. The MVP voters were fond of Carter, as his consistent top-ten finishes in Home Runs and RBIs earned him two top-five finishes for the…
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…
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…
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…
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…
A Third Round Pick from Washington State, John Olerud is one of a handful of players who never played in the Minors before tasting the Majors. Playing only a handful of games in 1989, the First Baseman was used in a platoon in 1990 and 1991, but it was evident that Olerud was ready to take it over full-time. Olerud was their everyday First Baseman when they won their first World Series in 1992, and he was one of the best players in the AL the following season when the Blue Jays repeated as champions. Olerud was still good over the…
Jim Clancy was not a superstar over his long career, but he was a dependable Starter for over a decade with the Blue Jays and provided necessary depth in the rotation. Few Pitchers in the Majors can say that for a team. Clancy was plucked from the Texas Rangers in the Sixth Round of the Expansion Draft, and the Pitcher made it up to the main roster in the summer of Toronto’s first season. Clancy was in the rotation as soon as he debuted, and he had eight campaigns for Toronto where he had at least 10 Wins, registering an overall record…