The 1998 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's 22nd season of Major League Baseball. It resulted in the Blue Jays finishing third in the American League East with a record of 88 wins and 74 losses, which was their best record since their 1993 World Series-winning season; the 88 wins were not surpassed until 2015.
1998 Toronto Blue Jays | ||
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League | American League | |
Division | East | |
Ballpark | SkyDome | |
City | Toronto | |
Record | 88–74 (.543) | |
Divisional place | 3rd | |
Owners | Interbrew, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce | |
General managers | Gord Ash | |
Managers | Tim Johnson | |
Television | CBC Television (Brian Williams, John Cerutti) The Sports Network (Dan Shulman, Buck Martinez) | |
Radio | CHUM (AM) (Jerry Howarth, Tom Cheek) | |
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With the disappointing last-place finish of the previous year, General Manager Gord Ash once again dug into the wallet to improve the team, signing reliever Randy Myers and slugger José Canseco as free agents. Though the team improved noticeably (thanks to another pitching Triple Crown and Cy Young Award-winning campaign by ace hurler Roger Clemens and a powerful lineup that featured Canseco, Carlos Delgado, Shawn Green, and José Cruz Jr.), they could not finish ahead of the New York Yankees or the Boston Red Sox, who won 114 and 92 games en route to winning the division crown and wild card respectively.
Transactions
editTransactions by the Toronto Blue Jays during the off-season before the 1998 season.[1]
October 1997
editOctober 6 | Luis Andújar granted free agency (signed with Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year contract on November 11, 1997). Jacob Brumfield granted free agency (signed with Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year contract on January 5, 1998), |
October 15 | Huck Flener granted free agency. Ryan Thompson granted free agency. |
October 17 | Rickey Cradle granted free agency (signed with Seattle Mariners to a one-year contract on November 7, 1997). |
October 27 | Orlando Merced granted free agency (signed with Minnesota Twins to a one-year, $800,000 contract on January 14, 1998). Charlie O'Brien granted free agency (signed with Chicago White Sox to a two-year, $1.4 million contract on December 10, 1997). |
October 28 | Joe Carter granted free agency (signed with Baltimore Orioles to a one-year, $3.3 million contract on December 12, 1997). Mariano Duncan granted free agency. Juan Samuel granted free agency (signed with Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year, $421,000 contract. |
October 29 | Selected Dane Johnson off of waivers from the Oakland Athletics. |
November 1997
editNovember 11 | Re-signed free agent Luis Andújar to a one-year contract. |
November 18 | Rich Butler selected by Tampa Bay Devil Rays as the 10th pick in the 1997 MLB Expansion Draft. Omar Daal selected by Arizona Diamondbacks as the 31st pick in the 1997 MLB Expansion Draft. Marty Janzen selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 1997 MLB Expansion Draft. |
November 25 | Signed free agent Shannon Withem from the Detroit Tigers to a contract. |
November 26 | Signed free agent Darrin Fletcher from the Montreal Expos to a two-year, $4.1 million contract. Signed free agent Randy Myers from the Baltimore Orioles to a three-year, $18 million contract. |
November 27 | Signed free agent Craig Grebeck from the Anaheim Angels to a one-year, $390,000 contract. Signed free agent Pat Kelly from the New York Yankees to a one-year, $325,000 contract. |
December 1997
editDecember 6 | Re-signed free agent Juan Samuel to a one-year, $421,000 contract. |
December 8 | Signed free agent Mark Dalesandro from the Chicago Cubs to a contract. Signed free agent Tony Fernández from the Cleveland Indians to a two-year, $4.2 million contract. Signed free agent Mike Stanley from the New York Yankees to a two-year, $6.15 million contract. |
December 10 | Signed free agent Alex Delgado from the Florida Marlins to a one-year contract. |
December 11 | Signed free agent José Herrera from the Oakland Athletics to a one-year contract. Traded Sandy Martínez to the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later (Trevor Schaffer on December 19, 1997). |
December 15 | Drafted Luis Saturria from the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1997 MLB Rule 5 draft. Joe Davenport drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 1997 MLB Rule 5 draft. |
December 21 | Carlos García granted free agency (signed with Cleveland Indians to a contract on January 6, 1998). |
January 1998
editJanuary 5 | Re-signed free agent Jacob Brumfield to a one-year contract. |
January 20 | Signed free agent Phil Plantier from the St. Louis Cardinals to a contract. |
February 1998
editFebruary 4 | Signed free agent Jose Canseco from the Oakland Athletics to a one-year, $2.1 million contract. |
February 6 | Re-signed Shawn Green to a two-year, $4.625 million contract. |
March 1998
editMarch 14 | Acquired Kevin Brown from the Texas Rangers for Tim Crabtree. |
March 15 | Re-signed Dan Plesac to a contract extension through 1999 (one-year, $1.5 million in 1999). |
March 20 | Returned Luis Saturria to the St. Louis Cardinals. |
March 24 | Released Jacob Brumfield. |
March 25 | Signed free agent Patrick Lennon from the Anaheim Angels to a contract. |
March 30 | Robert Pérez selected off of waivers by the Seattle Mariners. |
Regular season
editSeason standings
editTeam | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
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New York Yankees | 114 | 48 | .704 | — | 62–19 | 52–29 |
Boston Red Sox | 92 | 70 | .568 | 22 | 51–30 | 41–40 |
Toronto Blue Jays | 88 | 74 | .543 | 26 | 51–30 | 37–44 |
Baltimore Orioles | 79 | 83 | .488 | 35 | 42–39 | 37–44 |
Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 63 | 99 | .389 | 51 | 33–48 | 30–51 |
Record vs. opponents
editSources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] | |||||||||||||||
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Team | ANA | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
Anaheim | — | 5–6 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 10–6 |
Baltimore | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 2–9 | 5–6 | 10–1 | 5–6 | 7–3 | 3–9 | 8–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
Boston | 5–6 | 6–6 | — | 5–6 | 8–3 | 5–5 | 8–3 | 5–6 | 5–7 | 9–2 | 7–4 | 9–3 | 6–5 | 5–7 | 9–7 |
Chicago | 6–5 | 9–2 | 6–5 | — | 6–6 | 6–6 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 4–6–1 | 7–9 |
Cleveland | 7–4 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 6–6 | — | 9–3 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 9–2 | 7–3 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 10–6 |
Detroit | 3–8 | 1–10 | 5–5 | 6–6 | 3–9 | — | 6–6 | 8–4 | 3–8 | 7–4 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 3–8 | 5–6 | 7–9 |
Kansas City | 5–6 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 6–6 | — | 7–5 | 0–10 | 7–4 | 4–6 | 8–3 | 3–8 | 6–5 | 9–7 |
Minnesota | 5–6 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 5–7 | — | 4–7 | 4–7 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
New York | 5–6 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 7–4 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 10–0 | 7–4 | — | 8–3 | 8–3 | 11–1 | 8–3 | 6–6 | 13–3 |
Oakland | 7–5 | 3–8 | 2–9 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 3–8 | — | 5–7 | 5–6 | 6–6 | 5–6 | 8–8 |
Seattle | 3–9 | 5–6 | 4–7 | 7–4 | 2–9 | 8–3 | 6–4 | 9–2 | 3–8 | 7–5 | — | 6–5 | 5–7 | 4–7 | 7–9 |
Tampa Bay | 5–6 | 7–5 | 3–9 | 6–5 | 3–7 | 6–5 | 3–8 | 4–7 | 1–11 | 6–5 | 5–6 | — | 4–7 | 5–7 | 5–11 |
Texas | 7–5 | 5–6 | 5–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 8–3 | 8–3 | 4–7 | 3–8 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 7–4 | — | 7–4 | 8–8 |
Toronto | 7–4 | 7–5 | 7–5 | 6–4–1 | 4–7 | 6–5 | 5–6 | 7–4 | 6–6 | 6–5 | 7–4 | 7–5 | 4–7 | — | 9–7 |
Transactions
editTransactions for the Toronto Blue Jays during the 1998 regular season.[2]
April 1998
editApril 1 | Signed free agent Dave Stieb to a one-year, $300,000 contract. |
May 1998
editMay 21 | Signed amateur free agent Scott Cassidy to a contract. |
May 29 | Selected Ben Van Ryn off of waivers from the San Diego Padres. |
June 1998
editJune 16 | Released Erik Hanson. |
July 1998
editJuly 1 | Signed free agent Tony Phillips from the Anaheim Angels to a one-year contract. |
July 3 | Signed amateur free agent Gustavo Chacín to a contract. |
July 10 | Released Luis Andújar. |
July 16 | Player rights of Pat Kelly sold to the St. Louis Cardinals. |
July 30 | Acquired Pete Munro and Jay Yennaco from the Boston Red Sox for Mike Stanley. |
July 31 | Acquired Nerio Rodríguez and Shannon Carter from the Baltimore Orioles for Juan Guzmán. Acquired Scott Rivette from the Oakland Athletics for Ed Sprague Jr. Acquired Leo Estrella from the New York Mets for Tony Phillips. |
August 1998
editAugust 6 | Acquired Brian Loyd from the San Diego Padres for Randy Myers. |
September 1998
editSeptember 23 | Julio Mosquera selected off of waivers by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. |
September 25 | Signed amateur free agent Guillermo Quiróz to a contract. |
1998 MLB Draft
edit- June 2, 1998: Felipe López was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1st round (8th pick) of the 1998 amateur draft. Player signed August 11, 1998.[3]
Roster
edit1998 Toronto Blue Jays | |||||||||
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Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
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Manager
Coaches
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Game log
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April: 10–16 (Home: 5–8; Away: 5–8)
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May: 18–11 (Home: 8–6; Away: 10–5)
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June: 14–14 (Home: 8–5; Away: 6–9)
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July: 12–15 (Home: 9–4; Away: 3–12)
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August: 17–10 (Home: 11–5; Away: 6–5)
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September: 17–8 (Home: 10–2; Away: 7–6)
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Player stats
editBatting
editStarters by position
editNote: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average; Slg. = Slugging Average; SB = Stolen bases
Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | Avg. | Slg. | SB |
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C | Darrin Fletcher | 124 | 407 | 37 | 115 | 9 | 52 | .283 | .410 | 0 |
1B | Carlos Delgado | 142 | 503 | 94 | 155 | 38 | 115 | .292 | .592 | 3 |
2B | Craig Grebeck | 102 | 301 | 33 | 77 | 2 | 27 | .256 | .346 | 2 |
3B | Ed Sprague Jr. | 105 | 382 | 49 | 91 | 17 | 51 | .238 | .424 | 0 |
SS | Alex Gonzalez | 158 | 568 | 70 | 136 | 13 | 51 | .239 | .361 | 21 |
LF | Shannon Stewart | 144 | 516 | 90 | 144 | 12 | 55 | .279 | .417 | 51 |
CF | Jose Cruz Jr. | 105 | 352 | 55 | 89 | 11 | 42 | .253 | .403 | 11 |
RF | Shawn Green | 158 | 630 | 106 | 175 | 35 | 100 | .278 | .510 | 35 |
DH | Jose Canseco | 151 | 583 | 98 | 138 | 46 | 107 | .237 | .518 | 29 |
Other batters
editNote: 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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Tony Fernández | 138 | 486 | 156 | .321 | 9 | 72 |
Mike Stanley | 98 | 341 | 82 | .240 | 22 | 47 |
Felipe Crespo | 66 | 130 | 34 | .262 | 1 | 15 |
Kevin Brown | 52 | 110 | 29 | .264 | 2 | 15 |
Mark Dalesandro | 32 | 67 | 20 | .299 | 2 | 14 |
Juan Samuel | 43 | 50 | 9 | .180 | 1 | 2 |
Tony Phillips | 13 | 48 | 17 | .354 | 1 | 7 |
Benito Santiago | 15 | 29 | 9 | .310 | 0 | 4 |
Tom Evans | 7 | 10 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
Tomás Pérez | 6 | 9 | 1 | .111 | 0 | 0 |
Kevin Witt | 5 | 7 | 1 | .143 | 0 | 0 |
Patrick Lennon | 2 | 4 | 2 | .500 | 0 | 0 |
Pitching
editStarting pitchers
editNote: 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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Roger Clemens | 33 | 234.2 | 20 | 6 | 2.65 | 271 |
Woody Williams | 32 | 209.2 | 10 | 9 | 4.46 | 151 |
Pat Hentgen | 29 | 177.2 | 12 | 11 | 5.17 | 94 |
Chris Carpenter | 33 | 175.0 | 12 | 7 | 4.37 | 136 |
Juan Guzmán | 22 | 145.0 | 6 | 12 | 4.41 | 113 |
Roy Halladay | 2 | 14.0 | 1 | 0 | 1.93 | 13 |
Other pitchers
editNote: 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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Kelvim Escobar | 22 | 79.2 | 7 | 3 | 3.73 | 72 |
Dave Stieb | 19 | 50.1 | 1 | 2 | 4.83 | 27 |
Erik Hanson | 11 | 49.0 | 0 | 3 | 6.24 | 21 |
Relief pitchers
editNote: 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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Randy Myers | 41 | 3 | 4 | 28 | 4.46 | 32 |
Paul Quantrill | 82 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 2.59 | 59 |
Dan Plesac | 78 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3.78 | 55 |
Bill Risley | 44 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 5.27 | 42 |
Robert Person | 27 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 7.04 | 31 |
Carlos Almanzar | 25 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5.34 | 20 |
Steve Sinclair | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3.60 | 8 |
Ben Van Ryn | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9.00 | 3 |
Nerio Rodriguez | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9.72 | 3 |
Luis Andújar | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.53 | 1 |
Shannon Withem | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 | 2 |
Award winners
edit- José Canseco, DH, Silver Slugger Award
- Roger Clemens, Pitcher of the Month Award, August
- Roger Clemens, Cy Young Award
- Roger Clemens, MLB Leader Wins, 20
- Roger Clemens, AL Strikeout Crown, 271 Strikeouts
- Roger Clemens, AL ERA Crown, 2.65
- Roger Clemens, Major League Record, First Pitcher to win Five Cy Young Awards[5]
- Roger Clemens, P[6]
Farm system
editReferences
edit- ^ "1998 Toronto Blue Jays Trades and Transactions". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
- ^ "1998 Toronto Blue Jays Trades and Transactions". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
- ^ Felipe López Statistics Baseball-Reference.com
- ^ "1998 Seattle Mariners Statistics".
- ^ Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p.234, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, ISBN 978-0-451-22363-0
- ^ Blue Jays All-Stars | bluejays.com: History
- ^ Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007
External links
edit- 1998 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Reference
- 1998 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Almanac