1987 Toronto Blue Jays | ||
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League | American League | |
Division | East | |
Ballpark | Exhibition Stadium | |
City | Toronto | |
Record | 96–66 (.593) | |
Divisional place | 2nd | |
Owners | Labatt Breweries, Imperial Trust, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | |
General managers | Pat Gillick | |
Managers | Jimy Williams | |
Television | CFTO-TV (Don Chevrier, Tony Kubek, Fergie Olver) The Sports Network (Buck Martinez, Fergie Olver) | |
Radio | CJCL (AM) (Jerry Howarth, Tom Cheek) | |
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The 1987 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's 11th season of Major League Baseball. It resulted in the Blue Jays finishing second in the American League East with a record of 96 wins and 66 losses. They had been in first place by 3½ games over the Detroit Tigers with a week left to play, but they dropped their next seven games in a row, capped off by a sweep at the hands of Detroit at Tiger Stadium on the last weekend of the season, and lost the division by two games.
Transactions
[edit]Transactions by the Toronto Blue Jays during the off-season before the 1987 season.[1]
October 1986
[edit]October 8 | Released Mickey Mahler. |
October 20 | Released Dennis Lamp. |
November 1986
[edit]November 12 | Jim Clancy granted free agency. Cliff Johnson granted free agency. Buck Martinez granted free agency. Ernie Whitt granted free agency. |
December 1986
[edit]December 8 | Drafted José Núñez from the Kansas City Royals in the 1986 MLB Rule 5 draft. Stan Clarke drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 1986 MLB Rule 5 draft. Cliff Young drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 1986 MLB Rule 5 draft. |
December 9 | Gibson Alba selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 1986 Minor League Draft. |
January 1987
[edit]January 6 | Re-signed free agent Jim Clancy to a two-year, $1.75 million contract. |
January 8 | Re-signed free agent Ernie Whitt to a three-year, $2.3 million contract.[2] |
January 12 | Signed free agent Steve Fireovid from the Seattle Mariners to a contract. |
February 1987
[edit]February 2 | Acquired Craig McMurtry from the Atlanta Braves for Dámaso García and Luis Leal. |
March 1987
[edit]March 26 | Released Ron Shepherd. |
April 1987
[edit]April 2 | Released Bill Caudill. |
April 4 | Signed free agent Odell Jones from the Baltimore Orioles to a contract. |
April 6 | Cliff Young returned from the Oakland Athletics. |
Regular season
[edit]- Blue Jays left fielder George Bell drove in 134 runs to lead the American League, along with 47 home runs, and was selected the league's Most Valuable Player in a close vote over the Tigers' Alan Trammell.
- Tom Henke established himself as an elite closer, as he led the American League in saves with 34.
- Starting pitcher Jimmy Key led the American League with a 2.76 ERA.
- July 21, 1987: Jimmy Key threw exactly three pitches and recorded three outs.[3] This was accomplished in the second inning.
- September 14, 1987: The Blue Jays set a Major League record by hitting 10 home runs in a game against the Baltimore Orioles.
Season standings
[edit]Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
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Detroit Tigers | 98 | 64 | .605 | — | 54–27 | 44–37 |
Toronto Blue Jays | 96 | 66 | .593 | 2 | 52–29 | 44–37 |
Milwaukee Brewers | 91 | 71 | .562 | 7 | 48–33 | 43–38 |
New York Yankees | 89 | 73 | .549 | 9 | 51–30 | 38–43 |
Boston Red Sox | 78 | 84 | .481 | 20 | 50–30 | 28–54 |
Baltimore Orioles | 67 | 95 | .414 | 31 | 31–51 | 36–44 |
Cleveland Indians | 61 | 101 | .377 | 37 | 35–46 | 26–55 |
Record vs. opponents
[edit]Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] | ||||||||||||||
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Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TEX | TOR |
Baltimore | — | 1–12 | 9–3 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 4–9 | 9–3 | 2–11 | 5–7 | 3–10 | 7–5 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 1–12 |
Boston | 12–1 | — | 4–8 | 3–9 | 7–6 | 2–11 | 6–6 | 6–7 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 4–8 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–7 |
California | 3–9 | 8–4 | — | 8–5 | 7–5 | 3–9 | 5–8 | 7–5 | 8–5 | 3–9 | 6–7 | 7–6 | 5–8 | 5–7 |
Chicago | 4–8 | 9–3 | 5–8 | — | 7–5 | 3–9 | 6–7 | 6–6 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 9–4 | 6–7 | 7–6 | 4–8 |
Cleveland | 6–7 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 5–7 | — | 4–9 | 6–6 | 4–9 | 3–9 | 6–7 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 2–10 | 5–8 |
Detroit | 9–4 | 11–2 | 9–3 | 9–3 | 9–4 | — | 5–7 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 5–8 | 5–7 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 7–6 |
Kansas City | 3–9 | 6–6 | 8–5 | 7–6 | 6–6 | 7–5 | — | 4–8 | 8–5 | 5–7 | 5–8 | 9–4 | 7–6 | 8–4 |
Milwaukee | 11–2 | 7–6 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 9–4 | 7–6 | 8–4 | — | 3–9 | 7–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 9–3 | 9–4 |
Minnesota | 7–5 | 5–7 | 5–8 | 7–6 | 9–3 | 4–8 | 5–8 | 9–3 | — | 6–6 | 10–3 | 9–4 | 6–7 | 3–9 |
New York | 10–3 | 6–7 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 8–5 | 7–5 | 6–7 | 6–6 | — | 5–7 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 6–7 |
Oakland | 5–7 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 4–9 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 8–5 | 6–6 | 3–10 | 7–5 | — | 5–8 | 6–7 | 7–5 |
Seattle | 8–4 | 5–7 | 6–7 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 4–9 | 8–4 | 4–9 | 5–7 | 8–5 | — | 9–4 | 2–10 |
Texas | 5–7 | 5–7 | 8–5 | 6–7 | 10–2 | 4–8 | 6–7 | 3–9 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 4–9 | — | 3–9 |
Toronto | 12–1 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 8–5 | 6–7 | 4–8 | 4–9 | 9–3 | 7–6 | 5–7 | 10–2 | 9–3 | — |
Transactions
[edit]Transactions for the Toronto Blue Jays during the 1987 regular season.[4]
April 1987
[edit]April 17 | Released Steve Fireovid. |
June 1987
[edit]June 5 | Signed free agent Charlie Moore from the Milwaukee Brewers to a one-year, $256,000 contract. |
July 1987
[edit]July 14 | Acquired Juan Beníquez from the Kansas City Royals for Luis Aquino. |
July 30 | Signed amateur free agent Nigel Wilson to a contract. |
August 1987
[edit]August 4 | Signed amateur free agent Domingo Cedeño to a contract. |
August 9 | Acquired Phil Niekro from the Cleveland Indians for Darryl Landrum and a player to be named later (Don Gordon on August 10, 1987). |
August 18 | Signed amateur free agent Denis Boucher to a contract. |
August 25 | Released Gary Lavelle. |
August 31 | Released Phil Niekro. Acquired Mike Flanagan from the Baltimore Orioles for Oswaldo Peraza and a player to be named later (José Mesa on September 4, 1987). |
September 1987
[edit]September 22 | Acquired Juan Guzmán from the Los Angeles Dodgers for Mike Sharperson. |
Roster
[edit]1987 Toronto Blue Jays roster | |||||||||
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Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
Other batters |
Manager
Coaches
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Game log
[edit]1987 Game Log | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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April: 12–8 (Home: 7–4; Away: 5–4)
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May: 16–11 (Home: 7–3; Away: 9–8)
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June: 17–11 (Home: 8–7; Away: 9–4)
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July: 15–12 (Home: 12–4; Away: 3–8)
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August: 17–12 (Home: 12–6; Away: 5–6)
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September: 19–9 (Home: 13–5; Away: 6–4)
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October: 0–3 (Home: 0–0; Away: 0–3) |
Player stats
[edit]= Indicates team leader |
= Indicates league leader |
Batting
[edit]Starters by position
[edit]Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
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C | Ernie Whitt | 135 | 446 | 120 | .269 | 19 | 75 |
1B | Willie Upshaw | 150 | 512 | 125 | .244 | 15 | 58 |
2B | Garth Iorg | 122 | 310 | 65 | .210 | 4 | 30 |
3B | Kelly Gruber | 138 | 341 | 80 | .235 | 12 | 36 |
SS | Tony Fernández | 146 | 578 | 186 | .322 | 5 | 67 |
LF | George Bell | 156 | 610 | 188 | .308 | 47 | 134 |
CF | Lloyd Moseby | 155 | 592 | 167 | .282 | 26 | 96 |
RF | Jesse Barfield | 159 | 590 | 155 | .263 | 28 | 84 |
DH | Fred McGriff | 107 | 295 | 73 | .247 | 20 | 43 |
Other batters
[edit]Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
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Rance Mulliniks | 124 | 332 | 103 | .310 | 11 | 44 |
Rick Leach | 98 | 195 | 55 | .282 | 3 | 25 |
Cecil Fielder | 82 | 175 | 47 | .269 | 14 | 32 |
Nelson Liriano | 37 | 158 | 38 | .241 | 2 | 10 |
Manuel Lee | 56 | 121 | 31 | .256 | 1 | 11 |
Charlie Moore | 51 | 107 | 23 | .215 | 1 | 27 |
Mike Sharperson | 32 | 96 | 20 | .208 | 0 | 9 |
Juan Beníquez | 39 | 81 | 23 | .284 | 5 | 21 |
Rob Ducey | 34 | 48 | 9 | .188 | 1 | 6 |
Jeff DeWillis | 13 | 25 | 3 | .120 | 1 | 2 |
Matt Stark | 5 | 12 | 1 | .083 | 0 | 0 |
Greg Myers | 7 | 9 | 1 | .111 | 0 | 0 |
Lou Thornton | 12 | 2 | 1 | .500 | 0 | 0 |
Alexis Infante | 1 | 0 | 0 | ---- | 0 | 0 |
Pitching
[edit]Starting pitchers
[edit]Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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Jimmy Key | 36 | 261.0 | 17 | 8 | 2.76 | 161 |
Jim Clancy | 37 | 241.1 | 15 | 11 | 3.54 | 180 |
Dave Stieb | 33 | 185.0 | 13 | 9 | 4.09 | 115 |
Joe Johnson | 14 | 66.2 | 3 | 5 | 5.13 | 27 |
Mike Flanagan | 7 | 49.1 | 3 | 2 | 2.37 | 43 |
Phil Niekro | 3 | 12.0 | 0 | 2 | 8.25 | 7 |
Other pitchers
[edit]Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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John Cerutti | 44 | 151.1 | 11 | 4 | 4.40 | 92 |
José Núñez | 37 | 97.0 | 5 | 2 | 5.01 | 99 |
Relief pitchers
[edit]Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
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Tom Henke | 72 | 0 | 6 | 34 | 2.49 | 128 |
Mark Eichhorn | 89 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 3.17 | 96 |
Jeff Musselman | 68 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4.15 | 54 |
Gary Lavelle | 23 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5.53 | 17 |
David Wells | 18 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 3.99 | 32 |
Duane Ward | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.94 | 10 |
Don Gordon | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.09 | 3 |
Award winners
[edit]- Jesse Barfield, Gold Glove Award
- George Bell, American League RBI Champion, 134
- George Bell, American League MVP
- George Bell, Silver Slugger Award
- George Bell, The Sporting News Player of the Year Award
- Jim Clancy, Pitcher of the Month Award, May
- Tony Fernández, Gold Glove Award
- Tom Henke, American League Leader, Saves, 34
- Jimmy Key, American League ERA Champion, 2.76 ERA
- George Bell, OF, starter
- Tony Fernández, shortstop, reserve [5]
- Tom Henke, pitcher, reserve
Farm system
[edit]LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Myrtle Beach[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "1987 Toronto Blue Jays Trades and Transactions". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
- ^ "Catcher Ernie Whitt accepted a lesser contract from the..." www.upi.com. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
- ^ 3 Pitch Inning
- ^ "1987 Toronto Blue Jays Trades and Transactions". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
- ^ Blue Jays All-Stars | bluejays.com: History
- ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 2nd and 3rd editions. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 1997 and 2007
External links
[edit]- 1987 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Reference
- 1987 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Almanac
- The Fall of '87 — Sportsnet article by Gare Joyce