Over his seven seasons in Toronto, Venezuelan hurler Kelvim Escobar tried every role on the mound.

Debuting in 1997, five years after he was signed as an Amateur Free Agent, Escobar saved 14 Games as a rookie, but two years later was a starter, going 14-11, though his ERA was a bloated 5.69.  He again had an ERA over five in 2000 (10-14), going back and forth from starter to reliever, and was finding a groove in late relief in 2001.  

Toronto promoted Escobar to their closer in 2002, and though he had 38 Saves, the 4.27 ERA was not good, and they tried again in 2003 to figure out what to do with Escobar, who bounced between roles.  Escobar signed with the Angels in 2004, and though Escobar’s career as a Blue Jay was inconsistent and somewhat chaotic, he belongs on this list.

Marco Estrada struggled as a Starting Pitcher with Milwaukee, but the potential was there.  Toronto believed so, and they traded Adam Lind straight up for him before 2015, and it worked out well for Estrada and the Jays.

Estrada’s debut year with Toronto was his best in Baseball, setting personal bests of Wins (13), ERA (3.13), and WHIP (1.044), and he was the American League leader in H/9 (6.7).  He got a win in both the ALDS and ALCS, and the Jays were able to resign him as a Free Agent.  Estrada had another good year, going to the All-Star Game (his only) while again finishing atop the leaderboard in H/9 (6.8).  

His stats dropped afterward, with his ERA ballooning over five in 2018.  He signed with Oakland in 2019 but only appeared in five more Games.

With Toronto, Estrada had a 39-40 record with 575 Strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.235.

Lyle Overbay’s best years were with the Blue Jays, though it can be argued that the First Baseman did not live up to the expectations when the team traded for him in the 2005/2006 offseason.

The Blue Jays were in need of a First Baseman when they acquired Overbay, and in his first year North of the border, Overbay had career-highs in Home Runs (22), Batting Average (.312), and OPS (.880).  He could not reach those stats again, never batting .300 again, though he did have another 20 HR year in 2010, which was last year with the Jays, as he signed with the Pirates afterward.

Overbay had 672 Hits and 83 Home Runs and batted .268 in his five years in Toronto.

Orlando Hudson came a long way from the 1997 43^rd Round Pick to make the Jays roster in 2002, and the defensive-minded Second Baseman used his glove to show his worth on the Majors. 

Hudson went into 2003 as Toronto’s starter at Second, finishing the season with a 1.5 Defensive bWAR and batted .268.  He then had his best year as a Jay, leading the American League in Defensive bWAR (2.7) with 12 Home Runs and a .270 Batting Average.  Hudson then won the Gold Glove in 2005 (he should have won it in 2004) with similar metrics.

Toronto sent Hudson to Arizona in 2006, leaving the Infielder with 437 Hits and a Defensive bWAR of 7.5.