1987 Toronto Blue Jays season
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.
1987 Toronto Blue Jays | |
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Major League affiliations | |
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Location | |
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Results | |
Record | 96–66 (.593) |
Divisional place | 2nd |
Other information | |
Owner(s) | Labatt Breweries, Imperial Trust, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce |
General manager(s) | Pat Gillick |
Manager(s) | Jimy Williams |
Local television | CFTO-TV (Don Chevrier, Tony Kubek, Fergie Olver) The Sports Network (Buck Martinez, Fergie Olver) |
Local radio | CJCL (AM) (Jerry Howarth, Tom Cheek) |
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Offseason
- October 20, 1986: Dennis Lamp was released by the Blue Jays.[1]
- February 2, 1987: Luis Leal and Dámaso García were traded by the Blue Jays to the Atlanta Braves for Craig McMurtry.[2]
- March 26, 1987: Ron Shepherd was released by the Blue Jays.[3]
Regular season
- 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.[4] 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
AL East | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
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Detroit Tigers | 98 | 64 | 0.605 | — | 54–27 | 44–37 |
Toronto Blue Jays | 96 | 66 | 0.593 | 2 | 52–29 | 44–37 |
Milwaukee Brewers | 91 | 71 | 0.562 | 7 | 48–33 | 43–38 |
New York Yankees | 89 | 73 | 0.549 | 9 | 51–30 | 38–43 |
Boston Red Sox | 78 | 84 | 0.481 | 20 | 50–30 | 28–54 |
Baltimore Orioles | 67 | 95 | 0.414 | 31 | 31–51 | 36–44 |
Cleveland Indians | 61 | 101 | 0.377 | 37 | 35–46 | 26–55 |
Record vs. opponents
1987 American League Records Sources: | ||||||||||||||
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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 | — |
Notable transactions
- April 2, 1987: Bill Caudill was released by the Blue Jays.[5]
- June 2, 1987: 1987 Major League Baseball draft
- Ryan Thompson was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 13th round. Player signed June 4, 1987.[6]
- Steve Wapnick was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 30th round.[7]
- Darren Lewis was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 45th round, but did not sign.[8]
- August 25, 1987: Gary Lavelle was released by the Blue Jays.[9]
- August 31, 1987: Oswaldo Peraza and a player to be named later were traded by the Blue Jays to the Baltimore Orioles for Mike Flanagan. The Blue Jays completed the deal by sending José Mesa to the Orioles on September 4.[10]
- September 22, 1987: Mike Sharperson was traded by the Blue Jays to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Juan Guzmán.[11]
Roster
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
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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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Player stats
Batting
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 |
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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
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
Starting pitchers
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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Jim Clancy | 37 | 241⅓ | 15 | 11 | 3.54 | 180 |
Jimmy Key | 36 | 261 | 17 | 8 | 2.76 | 161 |
Dave Stieb | 33 | 185 | 13 | 9 | 4.09 | 115 |
Joe Johnson | 14 | 66⅔ | 3 | 5 | 5.13 | 27 |
Mike Flanagan | 7 | 49⅓ | 3 | 2 | 2.37 | 43 |
Phil Niekro | 3 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 8.25 | 7 |
Other pitchers
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
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John Cerutti | 44 | 151⅓ | 11 | 4 | 4.40 | 92 |
José Núñez | 37 | 97 | 5 | 2 | 5.01 | 99 |
Relief pitchers
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
- 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 [12]
- Tom Henke, Pitcher, Reserve
Farm system
Level | Team | League | Manager |
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AAA | Syracuse Chiefs | International League | Doug Ault |
AA | Knoxville Blue Jays | Southern League | Glenn Ezell |
A | Dunedin Blue Jays | Florida State League | Bob Bailor |
A | Myrtle Beach Blue Jays | South Atlantic League | Barry Foote |
A-Short Season | St. Catharines Blue Jays | New York–Penn League | Joe Lonnett |
Rookie | Medicine Hat Blue Jays | Pioneer League | Eddie Dennis |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Myrtle Beach[13]
gollark: .
gollark: It's not that hard to lose everything surely
gollark: Monopoly is a game of *strategy* and *deep tactical thought*.
gollark: Yes, it is insulting to Monopoly.
gollark: Monopoly is easy - roll dice, buy things you land on, occasionally add houses.
References
- Dennis Lamp at Baseball Reference
- Luis Leal at Baseball Reference
- Ron Shepherd at Baseball Reference
- 3 Pitch Inning
- Bill Caudill at Baseball Reference
- Ryan Thompson at Baseball Reference
- Steve Wapnick at Baseball Reference
- Darren Lewis at Baseball Reference
- Gary Lavelle at Baseball Reference
- Mike Flanagan at Baseball Reference
- Mike Sharperson at Baseball Reference
- 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
- 1987 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Reference
- 1987 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Almanac
- The Fall of '87 — Sportsnet article by Gare Joyce
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