1991 Toronto Blue Jays season
The 1991 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's 15th season of Major League Baseball. It resulted in the Blue Jays finishing first in the American League East with a record of 91 wins and 71 losses. The team's paid attendance of 4,001,527 led the major leagues, as the Jays became the first team in MLB history to draw four million fans in a season. Toronto lost the ALCS to the eventual world champion Minnesota Twins in five games.
| 1991 Toronto Blue Jays | |
|---|---|
| 1991 AL East Champions | |
| Major League affiliations | |
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| Location | |
| Results | |
| Record | 91–71 (.562) |
| Divisional place | 1st |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | Labatt Breweries, Imperial Trust, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Paul Beeston (CEO) |
| General manager(s) | Pat Gillick |
| Manager(s) | Cito Gaston, Gene Tenace |
| Local television | CFTO-TV (Don Chevrier, Tommy Hutton, Fergie Olver) The Sports Network (Jim Hughson, Buck Martinez) |
| Local radio | CJCL (AM) (Jerry Howarth, Tom Cheek) |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
Offseason
On December 4, 1990, the San Diego Padres and Blue Jays made one of the biggest blockbuster deals of the decade. The Padres traded second baseman Roberto Alomar and outfielder Joe Carter to the Blue Jays in exchange for first baseman Fred McGriff and shortstop Tony Fernández. Blue Jays GM Pat Gillick and Padres GM Joe McIlvaine originally talked about just trading Joe Carter for Fred McGriff.[1] The Padres were losing Jack Clark and needed a new first baseman. The Blue Jays had John Olerud ready to take over at first base but were losing outfielder George Bell. Gillick decided to up the ante by trying to get Alomar. Gillick figured that with Garry Templeton in the twilight of his career, Fernández would be an adequate replacement.[1] Alomar feuded with Padres manager Greg Riddoch and the thinking was that Bip Roberts and Joey Cora could platoon at second base.[1] Over the next two seasons, Alomar and Carter would help the Blue Jays win the 1992 and 1993 World Series.
Transactions
- October 24, 1990: Jim Eppard was released by the Blue Jays.[2]
- November 26, 1990: Ken Dayley was signed as a free agent by the Blue Jays.[3]
- December 2, 1990: Junior Félix, Luis Sojo and a player to be named later were traded by the Blue Jays to the California Angels for Devon White, Willie Fraser and Marcus Moore. The Blue Jays completed the deal by sending Ken Rivers (minors) to the Angels on December 4.[4]
- December 4, 1990: Fred McGriff and Tony Fernández were traded by the Blue Jays to the San Diego Padres for Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar.[5]
- December 5, 1990: Pat Tabler was signed as a free agent by the Blue Jays.[6]
- December 14, 1990: Paul Kilgus was traded by the Blue Jays to the Baltimore Orioles for Mickey Weston.[7]
Regular season
- May 1, 1991: The Blue Jays were part of baseball history, as Nolan Ryan threw his seventh and last no-hitter against them in Arlington.
- July 1, 1991: Joe Carter was named the AL Player of the Month for the month of June.
- August 13, 1991: After making 25 consecutive save opportunities, Tom Henke picked up a blown save after Paul Molitor hit a home run in the ninth.
- October 2, 1991: The Blue Jays clinched the American League East title in a 6-5 walk-off win over the California Angels. Joe Carter hit the game-winning single. The Jays also became the first team to have their season attendance pass the 4 million mark.
Opening Day starters
Season standings
| AL East | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto Blue Jays | 91 | 71 | 0.562 | — | 46–35 | 45–36 |
| Boston Red Sox | 84 | 78 | 0.519 | 7 | 43–38 | 41–40 |
| Detroit Tigers | 84 | 78 | 0.519 | 7 | 49–32 | 35–46 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 83 | 79 | 0.512 | 8 | 43–37 | 40–42 |
| New York Yankees | 71 | 91 | 0.438 | 20 | 39–42 | 32–49 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 67 | 95 | 0.414 | 24 | 33–48 | 34–47 |
| Cleveland Indians | 57 | 105 | 0.352 | 34 | 30–52 | 27–53 |
Record vs. opponents
1991 American League Records Sources: | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TEX | TOR |
| Baltimore | — | 8–5 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 7–6 | 5–8 | 4–8 | 3–10 | 4–8 | 5–8 | 3–9 | 4–8 | 9–3 | 5–8 |
| Boston | 5–8 | — | 4–8 | 7–5 | 9–4 | 5–8 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 3–9 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 9–3 | 5–7 | 9–4 |
| California | 6–6 | 8–4 | — | 8–5 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 9–4 | 6–6 | 8–5 | 6–6 | 1–12 | 6–7 | 5–8 | 6–6 |
| Chicago | 8–4 | 5–7 | 5–8 | — | 6–6 | 4–8 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 8–5 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 7–6 | 8–5 | 7–5 |
| Cleveland | 6–7 | 4–9 | 5–7 | 6–6 | — | 7–6 | 4–8 | 5–8 | 2–10 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 2–10 | 4–8 | 1–12 |
| Detroit | 8–5 | 8–5 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 6–7 | — | 8–4 | 4–9 | 4–8 | 8–5 | 4–8 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 5–8 |
| Kansas City | 8–4 | 5–7 | 4–9 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 4–8 | — | 9–3 | 6–7 | 7–5 | 6–7 | 7–6 | 7–6 | 5–7 |
| Milwaukee | 10–3 | 6–7 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 8–5 | 9–4 | 3–9 | — | 6–6 | 6–7 | 8–4 | 3–9 | 7–5 | 6–7 |
| Minnesota | 8–4 | 9–3 | 5–8 | 5–8 | 10–2 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 6–6 | — | 10–2 | 8–5 | 9–4 | 6–7 | 4–8 |
| New York | 8–5 | 7–6 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 7–6 | 5–8 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 2–10 | — | 6–6 | 3–9 | 5–7 | 6–7 |
| Oakland | 9–3 | 4–8 | 12–1 | 6–7 | 7–5 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 4–8 | 5–8 | 6–6 | — | 6–7 | 4–9 | 6–6 |
| Seattle | 8–4 | 3–9 | 7–6 | 6–7 | 10–2 | 4–8 | 6–7 | 9–3 | 4–9 | 9–3 | 7–6 | — | 5–8 | 5–7 |
| Texas | 3–9 | 7–5 | 8–5 | 5–8 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 6–7 | 5–7 | 7–6 | 7–5 | 9–4 | 8–5 | — | 6–6 |
| Toronto | 8–5 | 4–9 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 12–1 | 8–5 | 7–5 | 7–6 | 8–4 | 7–6 | 6–6 | 7–5 | 6–6 | — |
Notable transactions
- June 3, 1991: 1991 Major League Baseball draft
- Shawn Green was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 1st round (16th pick). Player signed September 25, 1991.[8]
- Jeff Ware was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 1st round (35th pick). Player signed August 25, 1991.[9]
- Dante Powell was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 1st round (42nd pick), but did not sign.[10]
- Chris Stynes was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 3rd round. Player signed June 4, 1991.[11]
- Alex Gonzalez was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 14th round. Player signed June 12, 1991.[12]
- June 4, 1991: Kenny Williams was selected off waivers from the Blue Jays by the Montreal Expos.[13]
- June 27, 1991: Glenallen Hill, Denis Boucher, Mark Whiten, and cash were traded by the Blue Jays to the Cleveland Indians for Tom Candiotti and Turner Ward.[14]
- July 14, 1991: Shawn Jeter and a player to be named later were traded by the Blue Jays to the Chicago White Sox for Cory Snyder. The Blue Jays completed the deal by sending Steve Wapnick to the White Sox on September 4.[15]
- August 9, 1991: Rob Wishnevski (minors) and a player to be named later were traded by the Blue Jays to the Milwaukee Brewers for Candy Maldonado. The Blue Jays completed the deal by sending William Suero to the Brewers on August 14.[16]
- September 14, 1991: Dave Parker was signed as a free agent by the Blue Jays.[17]
Roster
| 1991 Toronto Blue Jays | |||||||||
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Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
Other batters
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Manager
Coaches
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Manager Cito Gaston was sidelined with a herniated disc [18] from August 21 to September 25. Gene Tenace served as the team's interim manager,[19] going 19–14 and keeping the Jays in first place in the AL East for the duration of Gaston's absence.
Game log
| 1991 Game Log | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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April
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May
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June
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July
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August
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September
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October
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ALCS
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All-Star game
The Blue Jays hosted the 1991 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. It was the 62nd Midsummer Classic and was played on July 9 at SkyDome. Roberto Alomar was voted in as the starting second baseman for the American League, while pitcher Jimmy Key and outfielder Joe Carter were named as reserves on the AL team. Key got the win as the American League's All-Stars triumphed over the National League All-Stars, 4-2.
Player stats
Starters by position
Note: Pos = position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| = Indicates team leader |
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Greg Myers | 107 | 309 | 81 | .262 | 8 | 36 |
| 1B | John Olerud | 139 | 454 | 116 | .256 | 17 | 68 |
| 2B | Roberto Alomar | 161 | 637 | 188 | .295 | 9 | 69 |
| 3B | Kelly Gruber | 113 | 429 | 108 | .252 | 20 | 65 |
| SS | Manuel Lee | 138 | 445 | 104 | .234 | 0 | 29 |
| LF | Candy Maldonado | 52 | 177 | 49 | .277 | 7 | 28 |
| CF | Devon White | 156 | 642 | 181 | .282 | 17 | 60 |
| RF | Joe Carter | 162 | 638 | 174 | .273 | 33 | 108 |
| DH | Rance Mulliniks | 97 | 240 | 60 | .250 | 2 | 24 |
Other batters
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pat Borders | 105 | 291 | 71 | .244 | 5 | 36 |
| Mookie Wilson | 86 | 241 | 58 | .241 | 2 | 28 |
| Pat Tabler | 82 | 185 | 40 | .216 | 1 | 21 |
| Ed Sprague | 61 | 160 | 44 | .275 | 4 | 20 |
| Mark Whiten | 46 | 149 | 33 | .221 | 2 | 19 |
| Rene Gonzales | 71 | 118 | 23 | .195 | 1 | 6 |
| Glenallen Hill | 35 | 99 | 25 | .253 | 3 | 11 |
| Rob Ducey | 39 | 68 | 16 | .235 | 1 | 4 |
| Cory Snyder | 21 | 49 | 7 | .143 | 0 | 6 |
| Dave Parker | 13 | 36 | 12 | .333 | 0 | 3 |
| Kenny Williams | 13 | 29 | 6 | .207 | 1 | 3 |
| Derek Bell | 18 | 28 | 4 | .143 | 0 | 1 |
| Ray Giannelli | 9 | 24 | 4 | .167 | 0 | 0 |
| Eddie Zosky | 18 | 27 | 4 | .148 | 0 | 2 |
| Turner Ward | 8 | 13 | 4 | .308 | 0 | 2 |
| Randy Knorr | 3 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
Starting pitchers
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Todd Stottlemyre | 34 | 219 | 15 | 8 | 3.78 | 116 |
| Jimmy Key | 33 | 209 | 16 | 12 | 3.05 | 125 |
| Juan Guzmán | 23 | 138⅔ | 10 | 3 | 2.99 | 123 |
| Tom Candiotti | 19 | 129⅔ | 6 | 7 | 2.98 | 81 |
| Dave Stieb | 9 | 59⅔ | 4 | 3 | 3.17 | 29 |
| Denis Boucher | 7 | 35⅓ | 0 | 3 | 4.58 | 16 |
Other pitchers
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Wells | 40 | 198⅓ | 15 | 10 | 3.72 | 106 |
| Willie Fraser | 13 | 26⅓ | 0 | 2 | 6.15 | 12 |
| Pat Hentgen | 3 | 7⅓ | 0 | 0 | 2.45 | 3 |
Relief pitchers
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Henke | 49 | 0 | 2 | 32 | 2.32 | 53 |
| Duane Ward | 81 | 7 | 6 | 23 | 2.77 | 132 |
| Mike Timlin | 63 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 3.16 | 85 |
| Jim Acker | 54 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 5.20 | 44 |
| Bob MacDonald | 45 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 2.85 | 24 |
| David Weathers | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4.91 | 13 |
| Ken Dayley | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.23 | 3 |
| Frank Wills | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16.62 | 2 |
| Vince Horsman | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 2 |
| Al Leiter | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27.00 | 1 |
| Mickey Weston | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 |
ALCS
Game 1
October 8, Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 9 | 3 |
| Minnesota | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 5 | 11 | 0 |
| W: Jack Morris (1-0) L: Tom Candiotti (0-1) S: Rick Aguilera (1) | ||||||||||||
| HR: None | ||||||||||||
Game 2
October 9, Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toronto | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
| Minnesota | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| W: Juan Guzmán (1-0) L: Kevin Tapani (0-1) S: Duane Ward (1) | ||||||||||||
| HR: None | ||||||||||||
Game 3
October 11, Skydome
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 0 | |
| Toronto | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 1 | |
| W: Mark Guthrie (1-0) L: Mike Timlin (0-1) S: Rick Aguilera (2) | ||||||||||||||
| HR: MIN – Mike Pagliarulo (1) TOR – Joe Carter (1) | ||||||||||||||
Game 4
October 12, Skydome
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 13 | 1 |
| Toronto | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 11 | 2 |
| W: Jack Morris (2-0) L: Todd Stottlemyre (0-1) | ||||||||||||
| HR: MIN – Kirby Puckett (1) | ||||||||||||
Game 5
October 13, Skydome
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 14 | 2 |
| Toronto | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 1 |
| W: David West (1-0) L: Duane Ward (0-1) S: Rick Aguilera (3) | ||||||||||||
| HR: MIN – Kirby Puckett (2) | ||||||||||||
Award winners
- Roberto Alomar, 2B, Gold Glove Award
- Joe Carter, Player of the Month Award, June
- Joe Carter, OF, Silver Slugger Award
- Juan Guzman, P, The Sporting News Rookie of the Year Award
- Devon White, OF, Gold Glove Award
All-Star Game
- Roberto Alomar, 2B, Starter
- Joe Carter, OF, Reserve
- Jimmy Key, P, Reserve[20]
Farm system
References
- Diamond Dreams: 20 Years of Blue Jays Baseball, Stephen Brunt, p.261, Penguin Books, ISBN 0-14-023978-2
- Jim Eppard at Baseball Reference
- Ken Dayley at Baseball Reference
- Devon White at Baseball Reference
- Roberto Alomar at Baseball Reference
- Pat Tabler at Baseball Reference
- Paul Kilgus at Baseball Reference
- Shawn Green at Baseball Reference
- Jeff Ware at Baseball Reference
- Dante Powell at Baseball Reference
- Chris Stynes at Baseball Reference
- Alex Gonzalez at Baseball Reference
- Kenny Williams at Baseball Reference
- Glenallen Hill at Baseball Reference
- Cory Snyder at Baseball Reference
- Candy Maldonado at Baseball Reference
- Dave Parker at Baseball Reference
- "Jays' Manager Is Hospitalized". The New York Times. Associated Press. August 22, 1991. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- "Gene Tenace". www.retrosheet.org. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- "All-Stars". MLB.com. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- "1991 Toronto Blue Jays Minor League Affiliates". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
- 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
- 1991 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Reference
- 1991 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Almanac
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