2003 Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays have been around for a fairly short amount of time compared to some of the more storied Major League Baseball franchises. The Blue Jays first came into the American League in 1978. Despite this, the Blue Jays have won four division titles, and two World Series Championships back-to-back in 1992 and 1993.

Those Blue Jay teams were managed by Cito Gaston and had a great balance between offense and defense. They had great pitchers Juan Guzman, Dave Stewart, Jimmy Key, and Al Leiter. The offense on those championship teams was led by Roberto Alomar, Ed Sprague, Paul Molitor and Joe Carter. Carter was the author of the most famous moment in Blue Jays' history. In the 9th inning of game 6 of the World Series, Carter hit a walk-off, World Series winning home run off of Phillies' closer Mitch Williams. The homerun made Carter an instant hero. The Blue Jays have not won a division series since that Carter homerun, partly due to playing in such a competitive division. The Blue Jays play in the American League East against such rivals as the Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles, and New York Yankees.

The current Blue Jays team is managed by first time manager Carlos Tosca. Tosca had previously been a bench coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Atlanta Braves AAA team. The Bluejays are a competitive team in the American League East due to the contributions of their 2 most prominent players, a pitcher and a hitter. The pitcher is 2003 Cy Young award winner Roy Halladay. Halladay went 41-14 over the 2002 and 2003 seasons including winning fifteen straight decisions. The offensive cornerstone of the Blue Jays franchise is their left-handed slugging first baseman Carlos Delgado. Delgado is an MVP award winner who is considered to be one of the league's top sluggers and RBI men. Blue Jays ticket holders have a good future to look forward also, in part because Delgado now has some young offensive help. Third basemen Eric Hinske won the 2002 Rookie of the Year award and continued to hit well in 2003. Outfielder Vernon Wells showed his 5-tool ability in 2003, hitting 33 homeruns with 117 RBIs and playing a Gold Glove caliber center field.

From 1977 until early 1989 the Bluejays played outdoors at Exhibition Stadium. Ticket holders in Toronto had to deal with the cold Canadian weather at the beginning and end of the season. In 1989, the first retractable roof stadium in baseball opened in Toronto; it was called Skydome. The stadium features 12 different pricing sections, which allows any fan the opportunity to find a ticket that will fit their price range.

Toronto is in Canada, thus hockey is a big draw. The Maple Leafs of the NHL are extremely popular in Toronto and play their games at the Air Canada Centre. The Air Canada Centre is also home to perennial NBA all star Vince Carter and the Toronto Raptors. The Toronto Argonauts are one of the most successful teams in the Canadian Football League; they play their home games in the Skydome as well.

The Blue Jays should be able to continue to be competitive in the American League East. The two cornerstones of the franchise, Halladay and Delgado, with help from Hinske and Wells, should propel the Blue Jays into the playoff hunt.

Note: Though often spelled Bluejays, the correct spelling is Blue Jays.