1997 Toronto Blue Jays season

1997 Toronto Blue Jays
League	American League
Division	East
Ballpark	SkyDome
City	Toronto
Record	76–86 (.469)
Divisional place	5th
Owners	Interbrew, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce
General managers	Gord Ash
Managers	Cito Gaston, Melvin Douglas Queen
Television	CBC Television (Brian Williams, John Cerutti) The Sports Network (Dan Shulman, Buck Martinez)
Radio	CJCL (AM) (Jerry Howarth, Tom Cheek)
Seasons

The 1997 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's 21st season of Major League Baseball. It resulted in the Blue Jays finishing fifth in the American League East with a record of 76 wins and 86 losses. With a massive redesign of their logos and uniforms, the Blue Jays attempted to re-establish themselves in the American League East by signing Roger Clemens via free agency and bringing All-Stars Carlos García and Orlando Merced through trade. Although Clemens rejuvenated himself with the Blue Jays (en route to one of the best-ever single seasons by a starting pitcher, winning the Cy Young Award and the pitchers' triple crown), both Garcia and Merced ended up being flops as dismal overall hitting and an inconsistent bullpen doomed the Blue Jays once again to a last-place finish. 1997 also marked the end of the road for manager Cito Gaston, being fired near the end of the season (Gaston would eventually return to the team in 2008). Longtime fan-favourite Joe Carter also played in his final season for the Blue Jays, as he was released at the end of the season.

Transactions

Transactions by the Toronto Blue Jays during the off-season before the 1997 season.[1]

October 1996

October 2	Dane Johnson selected off of waivers by the Oakland Athletics.
October 3	Brian Bohanon granted free agency (signed with New York Mets to a one-year, $205,000 contract on December 18, 1996).
October 15	Mike Huff granted free agency. Félix José granted free agency. Scott Pose granted free agency (signed with New York Yankees to a one-year contract on November 27, 1996).

November 1996

November 14	Acquired Carlos García, Orlando Merced and Dan Plesac from the Pittsburgh Pirates for José Silva, Brandon Cromer, José Pett and players to be named later (Craig Wilson, Abraham Núñez and Mike Halperin on December 11, 1996). Re-signed Juan Guzmán to a two-year, $9.5 million contract.
November 18	Juan Samuel granted free agency (signed with Toronto Blue Jays to a one-year, $375,000 contract on December 18, 1996).
November 20	Acquired Jason Stevenson from the Chicago Cubs for Miguel Cairo.
November 27	Jeff Ware selected off of waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers.

December 1996

December 9	Travis Baptist drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1996 MLB Rule 5 draft. Mike Johnson drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 1996 MLB Rule 5 draft. Tom Davey selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 1996 Minor League Draft. Signed free agent Benito Santiago from the Philadelphia Phillies to a two-year, $6.5 million contract.
December 11	Acquired Anton French from the Detroit Tigers for Roberto Durán.
December 11	Signed Pat Hentgen to a contract extension through the 2001 season (three-year, $20 million contract).
December 13	Signed free agent Roger Clemens from the Boston Red Sox to a four-year, $40 million contract.
December 18	Re-signed free agent Juan Samuel to a one-year, $375,000 contract.
December 20	Acquired Robert Person from the New York Mets for John Olerud and cash.

February 1997

February 17

Signed free agent Jeff Manto from the Cleveland Indians to a one-year, $240,000 contract.

March 1997

March 20

Tom Davey returned from the Baltimore Orioles.

Regular season

Opening-day starters

• Joe Carter
• Carlos Delgado
• Carlos García
• Alex Gonzalez
• Shawn Green
• Pat Hentgen
• Orlando Merced
• Otis Nixon
• Benito Santiago
• Ed Sprague Jr.[2]

Interleague play

• June 30 – The first interleague game between the Montreal Expos and the Toronto Blue Jays took place at the SkyDome. The Expos won the game by a score of 2-1.[3]

Expos vs. Jays

June 30, SkyDome, Toronto, Ontario

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Montreal	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	6	0
Toronto	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	3	0
W: Pedro Martínez (10-3)  L: Pat Hentgen (8-5)
Home Runs: Vladimir Guerrero (4), Carlos Delgado (15) Attendance: 37,430 Time: 2:03

Batting

Montreal Expos	AB	R	H	RBI	Toronto Blue Jays	AB	R	H	RBI
Grudzielanek, ss	3	1	1	0	Nixon cf	4	0	1	0
Lansing 2b	4	0	0	0	Merced dh	4	0	0	0
Santangelo 3b	4	0	0	0	Carter lf	4	0	0	0
Segui 1b	3	0	2	1	Delgado 1b	2	1	1	1
Rodriguez lf	4	0	0	0	Sprague 3b	3	0	0	0
Orsulak lf	0	0	0	0	Green rf	3	0	0	0
Guerrero rf	4	1	2	1	Santiago c	3	0	0	0
McGuire dh	3	0	0	0	Gonzalez ss	3	0	1	0
White cf	3	0	0	0	Garcia 2b	3	0	0	0
Widger c	3	0	1	0	NONE	0	0	0	0
Totals	31	2	6	2	Totals	29	1	3	1

Pitching

Montreal Expos	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
Martinez W (10-3)	9.0	3	1	1	1	10
Totals	9.0	3	1	1	1	10

Toronto Blue Jays	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO
Hentgen L (8-5)	9.0	6	2	2	1	3
Totals	9.0	6	2	2	1	3

Canada Day game

The Blue Jays and Expos played to a sold-out Skydome crowd on Canada Day. Legendary Roger Clemens would get the start as the Blue Jays donned red uniforms for the second time. Montreal pitcher Jeff Juden would have a no-hitter through the first six innings until Shawn Green would hit a dramatic home run to break Juden's bid for a no-hitter.

Season standings

• v
• t
• e

AL East

Team	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Baltimore Orioles	98	64	.605	—	46‍–‍35	52‍–‍29
New York Yankees	96	66	.593	2	47‍–‍33	49‍–‍33
Detroit Tigers	79	83	.488	19	42‍–‍39	37‍–‍44
Boston Red Sox	78	84	.481	20	39‍–‍42	39‍–‍42
Toronto Blue Jays	76	86	.469	22	42‍–‍39	34‍–‍47

Record vs. opponents

1997 American League record v t e Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14]
Team	ANA	BAL	BOS	CWS	CLE	DET	KC	MIL	MIN	NYY	OAK	SEA	TEX	TOR	NL
Anaheim	—	4–7	6–5	6–5	7–4	5–6	6–5	7–4	4–7	4–7	11–1	6–6	8–4	6–5	4–12
Baltimore	7–4	—	5–7	5–6	6–5	6–6	7–4	5–6	10–1	8–4	8–3	7–4	10–1	6–6	8–7
Boston	5–6	7–5	—	3–8	6–5	5–7	3–8	8–3	8–3	4–8	7–4	7–4	3–8	6–6	6–9
Chicago	5–6	6–5	8–3	—	5–7	4–7	11–1	4–7	6–6	2–9	8–3	5–6	3–8	5–6	8–7
Cleveland	4–7	5–6	5–6	7–5	—	6–5	8–3	8–4	8–4	5–6	7–4	3–8	5–6	6–5	9–6
Detroit	6–5	6–6	7–5	7–4	5–6	—	6–5	4–7	4–7	2–10	7–4	4–7	7–4	6–6	8–7
Kansas City	5–6	4–7	8–3	1–11	3–8	5–6	—	6–6	7–5	3–8	3–8	5–6	6–5	5–6	6–9
Milwaukee	4–7	6–5	3–8	7–4	4–8	7–4	6–6	—	5–7	4–7	5–6	5–6	7–4	7–4	8–7
Minnesota	7–4	1–10	3–8	6–6	4–8	7–4	5–7	7–5	—	3–8	7–4	5–6	3–8	3–8	7–8
New York	7–4	4–8	8–4	9–2	6–5	10–2	8–3	7–4	8–3	—	6–5	4–7	7–4	7–5	5–10
Oakland	1–11	3–8	4–7	3–8	4–7	4–7	8–3	6–5	4–7	5–6	—	5–7	5–7	6–5	7–9
Seattle	6–6	4–7	4–7	6–5	8–3	7–4	6–5	6–5	6–5	7–4	7–5	—	8–4	8–3	7–9
Texas	4–8	1–10	8–3	8–3	6–5	4–7	5–6	4–7	8–3	4–7	7–5	4–8	—	4–7	10–6
Toronto	5–6	6–6	6–6	6–5	5–6	6–6	6–5	4–7	8–3	5–7	5–6	3–8	7–4	—	4–11

Transactions

Transactions for the Toronto Blue Jays during the 1997 regular season.[4]

May 1997

May 11

Signed free agent Rubén Sierra from the Cincinnati Reds to a contract.

June 1997

June 5	Acquired Ryan Thompson from the Cleveland Indians for Jeff Manto.
June 16	Released Rubén Sierra.

July 1997

July 25	Selected Omar Daal of off waivers from the Montreal Expos.
July 29	Acquired Mariano Duncan from the New York Yankees for Angel Ramirez.
July 31	Acquired José Cruz Jr. from the Seattle Mariners for Mike Timlin and Paul Spoljaric.

August 1997

August 8	Tilson Brito selected off of waivers by the Oakland Athletics.
August 12	Acquired Bobby Cripps from the Los Angeles Dodgers for Otis Nixon.

Roster

1997 Toronto Blue Jays
Roster
Pitchers 40 Carlos Almanzar 49 Luis Andújar 50 Chris Carpenter 21 Roger Clemens 37 Tim Crabtree 54 Omar Daal 45 Kelvim Escobar 38 Huck Flener 57 Juan Guzmán 39 Erik Hanson 41 Pat Hentgen 36 Marty Janzen 31 Robert Person 19 Dan Plesac 48 Paul Quantrill 55 Bill Risley 52 Kenny Robinson 24 Paul Spoljaric 40 Mike Timlin 54,30 Woody Williams		Catchers 35 Sandy Martínez 46 Julio Mosquera 22 Charlie O'Brien 18 Benito Santiago Infielders 12 Tilson Brito 43,29 Joe Carter  3 Felipe Crespo 25 Carlos Delgado 24 Mariano Duncan 28 Tom Evans 13 Carlos García  8 Alex Gonzalez  1 Tomás Pérez 11 Juan Samuel 33 Ed Sprague		Outfielders  5 Jacob Brumfield 12 Rich Butler 23 José Cruz Jr. 15 Shawn Green  6 Orlando Merced  2 Otis Nixon 17 Robert Pérez 14 Rubén Sierra  7 Shannon Stewart		Manager 43 Cito Gaston 34 Mel Queen Coaches  4 Alfredo Griffin (First Base) 10 Jim Lett (Bench) 16 Nick Leyva (Third Base) 34 Mel Queen (Pitching) 18 Gene Tenace (Bullpen) 26 Willie Upshaw (Hitting)

Game log

1997 Game Log
April: 11–12 (Home: 5–7; Away: 6–5) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 1 April 1 White Sox 6–5 (10) Castillo (1–0) Plesac (0–1) Hernández (1) 40,299 0–1 2 April 2 White Sox 6–1 Clemens (1–0) Álvarez (0–1) 31,310 1–1 3 April 4 Brewers 6–2 Guzmán (1–0) Karl (0–1) Crabtree (1) 26,331 2–1 4 April 5 Brewers 5–2 McAndrew (1–0) Williams (0–1) Jones (1) 31,226 2–2 5 April 6 Brewers 4–2 McDonald (1–1) Hentgen (0–1) Jones (2) 29,106 2–3 -- April 8 @ White Sox Postponed (cold weather) Rescheduled for August 19 6 April 9 @ White Sox 5–0 Clemens (2–0) Álvarez (0–2) 746 3–3 7 April 10 @ White Sox 4–0 Guzmán (2–0) Baldwin (0–1) 14,180 4–3 -- April 11 @ Brewers Postponed (snow) Rescheduled for July 28 -- April 12 @ Brewers Postponed (snow) Rescheduled for July 29 8 April 13 @ Brewers 3–2 Wickman (1–0) Crabtree (0–1) 19,143 4–4 9 April 14 Royals 3–2 Rusch (2–0) Quantrill (0–1) Pichardo (2) 25,642 4–5 10 April 15 Royals 7–5 Rosado (1–0) Guzmán (2–1) Pichardo (3) 25,582 4–6 11 April 16 Athletics 4–3 Crabtree (1–1) Taylor (0–1) 26,139 5–6 12 April 17 Athletics 5–4 Quantrill (1–1) Groom (0–1) Timlin (1) 25,625 6–6 13 April 18 @ Rangers 6–5 Hentgen (1–1) Pavlik (1–2) Timlin (2) 30,452 7–6 14 April 19 @ Rangers 6–0 Clemens (3–0) Hill (1–2) 44,206 8–6 15 April 20 @ Rangers 10–5 Witt (3–0) Guzmán (2–2) 34,333 8–7 16 April 21 @ Angels 5–4 (13) DeLucia (1–0) Spoljaric (0–1) 13,413 8–8 17 April 22 @ Angels 7–6 Quantrill (2–1) James (1–2) Plesac (1) 13,353 9–8 18 April 23 @ Angels 5–4 (10) DeLucia (2–0) Spoljaric (0–2) 13,117 9–9 19 April 25 Mariners 13–8 Ayala (2–0) Plesac (0–2) 31,215 9–10 20 April 26 Mariners 4–3 Quantrill (3–1) Lowe (0–1) 31,420 10–10 21 April 27 Mariners 2–1 Johnson (3–0) Person (0–1) Charlton (7) 32,160 10–11 22 April 29 @ Royals 6–5 (10) Pichardo (1–0) Quantrill (3–2) 12,533 10–12 23 April 30 @ Royals 1–0 Clemens (4–0) Appier (3–1) Spoljaric (1) 13,004 11–12
May: 15–13 (Home: 8–7; Away: 7–6) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 24 May 1 @ Royals 8–0 Rosado (2–0) Williams (0–2) 12,046 11–13 25 May 2 Twins 3–2 (10) Radke (2–1) Crabtree (1–2) Aguilera (5) 30,226 11–14 26 May 3 Twins 6–5 Quantrill (4–2) Ritchie (2–3) 29,150 12–14 27 May 4 Twins 1–0 Hentgen (2–1) Tewksbury (1–5) 29,114 13–14 28 May 5 Tigers 3–1 Clemens (5–0) Olivares (1–2) 27,169 14–14 29 May 6 Tigers 2–1 (10) Crabtree (2–2) Jones (1–2) 26,294 15–14 30 May 7 @ Indians 7–1 McDowell (3–2) Person (0–2) 42,463 15–15 31 May 8 @ Indians 4–3 Guzmán (3–2) Ogea (2–3) Quantrill (1) 42,567 16–15 32 May 9 @ Twins 4–1 Hentgen (3–1) Rodriguez (1–3) Timlin (3) 13,277 17–15 33 May 10 @ Twins 6–4 Clemens (6–0) Swindell (2–2) Crabtree (2) 20,932 18–15 34 May 11 @ Twins 3–2 Williams (1–2) Aldred (1–5) Timlin (4) 32,552 19–15 35 May 12 @ Twins 12–2 Radke (3–2) Carpenter (0–1) 10,830 19–16 36 May 13 @ Tigers 4–0 Lira (2–2) Guzmán (3–3) 9,992 19–17 37 May 14 @ Tigers 7–2 Hentgen (4–1) Moehler (2–3) 11,788 20–17 38 May 16 Indians 5–2 Clemens (7–0) Hershiser (3–2) Timlin (5) 35,195 21–17 39 May 17 Indians 8–1 Lopez (1–2) Williams (1–3) 36,220 21–18 40 May 18 Indians 8–6 Ogea (4–3) Carpenter (0–2) Jackson (4) 31,137 21–19 41 May 20 @ Yankees 2–0 Hentgen (5–1) Pettitte (6–2) 20,220 22–19 42 May 21 @ Yankees 4–1 Clemens (8–0) Rogers (3–2) 19,863 23–19 43 May 23 Angels 12–2 Springer (3–1) Guzmán (3–4) 30,209 23–20 44 May 24 Angels 3–1 Watson (2–3) Williams (1–4) Percival (2) 28,351 23–21 45 May 25 Angels 4–3 (11) Timlin (1–0) DeLucia (4–2) 28,180 24–21 46 May 26 Rangers 8–1 Clemens (9–0) Santana (2–2) 28,113 25–21 47 May 27 Rangers 15–5 Burkett (4–3) Person (0–3) 28,126 25–22 48 May 28 Yankees 6–4 Wells (5–3) Guzmán (3–5) Rivera (15) 32,338 25–23 49 May 29 Yankees 4–0 Cone (6–3) Williams (1–5) Nelson (1) 43,155 25–24 50 May 30 @ Athletics 12–7 Prieto (4–3) Hentgen (5–2) 11,004 25–25 51 May 31 @ Athletics 13–3 Clemens (10–0) Telgheder (1–3) 15,027 26–25
June: 11–15 (Home: 5–11; Away: 6–4) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 52 June 1 @ Athletics 8–2 Oquist (1–1) Person (0–4) 21,127 26–26 53 June 2 @ Mariners 3–0 Johnson (8–1) Andújar (0–1) 40,312 26–27 54 June 3 @ Mariners 6–3 Moyer (5–2) Williams (1–6) 28,786 26–28 55 June 5 Athletics 4–3 Reyes (1–0) Hentgen (5–3) Taylor (10) 30,189 26–29 56 June 6 Athletics 4–1 Clemens (11–0) Oquist (1–2) Quantrill (2) 32,208 27–29 57 June 7 Athletics 3–1 Person (1–4) Karsay (1–7) Quantrill (3) 28,490 28–29 58 June 8 Athletics 7–5 Wengert (3–3) Andújar (0–2) Taylor (11) 29,404 28–30 59 June 10 Mariners 8–3 Hentgen (6–3) Sanders (2–6) 33,124 29–30 60 June 11 Mariners 5–1 Fassero (6–2) Clemens (11–1) 41,099 29–31 61 June 13 @ Phillies 4–3 Gomes (1–0) Spoljaric (0–3) Bottalico (14) 26,799 29–32 62 June 14 @ Phillies 3–2 Person (2–4) Nye (0–2) Quantrill (4) 22,582 30–32 63 June 15 @ Phillies 11–1 Hentgen (7–3) Leiter (4–7) 30,516 31–32 64 June 16 Braves 3–0 Neagle (10–1) Clemens (11–2) 34,409 31–33 65 June 17 Braves 8–7 Maddux (8–3) Andújar (0–3) Wohlers (14) 31,356 31–34 66 June 18 Braves 5–3 Williams (2–6) Smoltz (6–6) Timlin (6) 31,717 32–34 67 June 20 Orioles 3–0 Hentgen (8–3) Mussina (8–2) 30,266 33–34 68 June 21 Orioles 5–1 Erickson (10–2) Plesac (0–3) 40,139 33–35 69 June 22 Orioles 5–2 Kamieniecki (6–3) Person (2–5) Myers (25) 35,106 33–36 70 June 23 Red Sox 7–6 Sele (9–5) Williams (2–7) Slocumb (8) 30,380 33–37 71 June 24 Red Sox 9–6 Wasdin (2–3) Andújar (0–4) Slocumb (9) 27,263 33–38 72 June 25 Red Sox 13–12 Wakefield (3–7) Hentgen (8–4) Slocumb (10) 27,605 33–39 73 June 26 @ Orioles 3–0 Clemens (12–2) Erickson (10–3) Timlin (7) 47,617 34–39 74 June 27 @ Orioles 2–1 Person (3–5) Kamieniecki (6–4) Spoljaric (2) 47,900 35–39 75 June 28 @ Orioles 5–2 Williams (3–7) Key (11–4) Timlin (8) 47,687 36–39 76 June 29 @ Orioles 3–2 Escobar (1–0) Benítez (0–3) Timlin (9) 47,763 37–39 77 June 30 Expos 2–1 Martínez (10–3) Hentgen (8–5) 37,430 37–40
July: 13–15 (Home: 8–4; Away: 5–11) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 78 July 1 Expos 2–1 Juden (10–2) Clemens (12–3) Urbina (15) 50,436 37–41 79 July 2 Expos 7–6 (13) Timlin (2–0) Telford (2–2) 34,176 38–41 80 July 3 Yankees 3–1 Wells (9–4) Williams (3–8) Rivera (27) 31,227 38–42 81 July 4 Yankees 1–0 Escobar (2–0) Cone (8–4) 34,134 39–42 82 July 5 Yankees 8–0 Pettitte (9–5) Hentgen (8–6) 44,206 39–43 83 July 6 Yankees 2–0 Clemens (13–3) Mendoza (3–4) 41,137 40–43 84 July 10 @ Red Sox 8–7 (11) Eshelman (3–3) Timlin (2–1) 30,913 40–44 85 July 11 @ Red Sox 8–4 Hentgen (9–6) Wasdin (3–4) 32,543 41–44 86 July 12 @ Red Sox 3–1 Clemens (14–3) Sele (10–7) Spoljaric (3) 33,106 42–44 87 July 13 @ Red Sox 3–2 Williams (4–8) Wakefield (3–10) Escobar (1) 32,418 43–44 88 July 14 @ Orioles 9–5 Mathews (2–1) Person (3–6) 47,042 43–45 89 July 15 @ Orioles 8–4 Boskie (5–3) Guzmán (3–6) 47,062 43–46 90 July 16 @ Rangers 6–0 Oliver (6–9) Hentgen (9–7) 45,313 43–47 91 July 17 @ Rangers 9–1 Clemens (15–3) Burkett (7–8) 46,239 44–47 92 July 18 @ Angels 2–1 Williams (5–8) Watson (8–6) Escobar (2) 26,087 45–47 93 July 19 @ Angels 5–4 Percival (4–4) Timlin (2–2) 28,288 45–48 94 July 20 @ Angels 9–5 Finley (8–6) Andújar (0–5) 19,671 45–49 95 July 22 Brewers 5–2 Hentgen (10–7) Eldred (9–10) Escobar (3) 33,181 46–49 96 July 23 Brewers 8–0 Clemens (16–3) McAndrew (1–1) 31,580 47–49 97 July 24 Brewers 5–4 Williams (6–8) Mercedes (3–6) Escobar (4) 30,114 48–49 98 July 25 Royals 2–1 Person (4–6) Rusch (3–6) Escobar (5) 31,308 49–49 99 July 26 Royals 6–5 Timlin (3–2) Carrasco (0–1) 34,133 50–49 100 July 27 Royals 3–2 Olson (1–0) Quantrill (4–3) 32,341 50–50 101 July 28 @ Brewers 1–0 Woodard (1–0) Clemens (16–4) Fetters (3) 50–51 102 July 28 @ Brewers 9–3 Adamson (3–1) Flener (0–1) 18,034 50–52 103 July 29 @ Brewers 2–0 Mercedes (4–6) Williams (6–9) Fetters (4) 22,549 50–53 104 July 29 @ Brewers 4–2 Karl (6–10) Carpenter (0–3) Fetters (5) 12,237 50–54 105 July 31 @ Tigers 4–2 Thompson (9–8) Person (4–7) Jones (19) 16,294 50–55
August: 15–15 (Home: 8–6; Away: 7–9) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 106 August 1 @ Tigers 7–5 Hentgen (11–7) Miceli (2–2) Escobar (6) 23,682 51–55 107 August 2 @ Tigers 8–7 Brocail (3–4) Quantrill (4–4) Jones (20) 22,254 51–56 108 August 3 @ Tigers 5–2 Blair (11–4) Williams (6–10) Jones (21) 27,848 51–57 109 August 4 @ Twins 9–3 Radke (16–5) Carpenter (0–4) 19,018 51–58 110 August 5 @ Twins 8–3 Person (5–7) Miller (0–2) 17,920 52–58 111 August 6 Indians 6–3 Hentgen (12–7) Lopez (3–5) Escobar (7) 36,463 53–58 112 August 7 Indians 4–0 Clemens (17–4) Smiley (1–1) 35,194 54–58 113 August 8 Tigers 6–3 Williams (7–10) Blair (11–5) Escobar (8) 30,228 55–58 114 August 9 Tigers 3–2 Sanders (4–9) Carpenter (0–5) Jones (23) 37,166 55–59 115 August 10 Tigers 4–2 Thompson (11–8) Person (5–8) 32,354 55–60 116 August 11 Tigers 8–2 Hentgen (13–7) Jarvis (0–2) 30,105 56–60 117 August 12 Twins 9–1 Clemens (18–4) Bowers (0–2) 33,108 57–60 118 August 13 Twins 3–2 Quantrill (5–4) Trombley (1–2) 31,292 58–60 119 August 15 @ Indians 5–4 (10) Assenmacher (4–0) Crabtree (2–3) 43,011 58–61 120 August 16 @ Indians 8–4 Shuey (3–1) Quantrill (5–5) 42,908 58–62 121 August 17 @ Indians 10–5 Clemens (19–4) Wright (3–2) 42,861 59–62 122 August 18 @ Indians 5–3 Hershiser (11–5) Williams (7–11) Mesa (6) 42,471 59–63 123 August 19 @ White Sox 6–5 Carpenter (1–5) Cruz (0–1) Escobar (9) 60–63 124 August 19 @ White Sox 5–3 Bere (1–0) Andújar (0–6) Karchner (7) 19,643 60–64 125 August 20 @ White Sox 12–6 Baldwin (9–13) Person (5–9) 20,003 60–65 126 August 21 @ White Sox 6–3 Drabek (10–8) Hentgen (13–8) Karchner (8) 20,120 60–66 127 August 22 @ Royals 5–3 Clemens (20–4) Rosado (8–10) Escobar (10) 29,604 61–66 128 August 23 @ Royals 6–5 Janzen (1–0) Walker (3–3) Quantrill (5) 19,249 62–66 129 August 24 @ Royals 11–8 (13) Crabtree (3–3) Casian (0–2) 14,434 63–66 130 August 26 White Sox 8–5 Baldwin (10–13) Williams (7–12) Karchner (10) 31,198 63–67 131 August 27 White Sox 13–2 Hentgen (14–8) Drabek (10–9) 30,219 64–67 132 August 28 White Sox 3–2 (11) Quantrill (6–5) McElroy (0–3) 36,181 65–67 133 August 29 Marlins 8–0 Leiter (9–9) Person (5–10) 29,223 65–68 134 August 30 Marlins 4–1 Fernandez (17–9) Carpenter (1–6) Nen (32) 35,229 65–69 135 August 31 Marlins 8–3 Hernández (9–0) Williams (7–13) 31,125 65–70
September: 11–16 (Home: 9–3; Away: 2–13) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record 136 September 1 @ Mets 3–0 Isringhausen (2–0) Hentgen (14–9) Franco (34) 19,196 65–71 137 September 2 @ Mets 8–5 Acevedo (2–1) Clemens (20–5) Wendell (5) 17,635 65–72 138 September 3 @ Mets 4–2 Mlicki (7–10) Quantrill (6–6) Franco (35) 14,513 65–73 139 September 4 Rangers 6–2 Helling (2–1) Carpenter (1–7) 26,178 65–74 140 September 5 Rangers 5–1 Williams (8–13) Pavlik (2–4) 27,121 66–74 141 September 6 Rangers 2–1 Hentgen (15–9) Burkett (7–12) Escobar (11) 31,232 67–74 142 September 7 Rangers 4–0 Clemens (21–5) Oliver (11–11) 30,212 68–74 143 September 8 Angels 12–10 Plesac (1–3) James (4–5) Escobar (12) 25,775 69–74 144 September 9 Angels 2–0 Carpenter (2–7) Hill (7–12) 25,674 70–74 145 September 10 @ Athletics 3–2 Mathews (5–2) Plesac (1–4) 4,764 70–75 146 September 11 @ Athletics 8–7 Mathews (6–2) Escobar (2–1) 6,135 70–76 147 September 12 @ Mariners 7–3 Ayala (10–4) Clemens (21–6) 37,044 70–77 148 September 13 @ Mariners 6–3 Escobar (3–1) Ayala (10–5) 51,631 71–77 149 September 14 @ Mariners 3–2 Timlin (6–4) Risley (0–1) Slocumb (24) 45,477 71–78 150 September 15 @ Mariners 7–3 Cloude (3–2) Williams (8–14) Slocumb (25) 41,684 71–79 151 September 17 @ Red Sox 4–3 Mahay (3–0) Quantrill (6–7) Gordon (9) 23,648 71–80 152 September 18 @ Red Sox 3–2 Corsi (4–2) Escobar (3–2) 27,990 71–81 153 September 19 @ Yankees 3–0 Daal (1–0) Gooden (8–5) Escobar (13) 31,195 72–81 154 September 20 @ Yankees 4–3 (11) Banks (3–0) Janzen (1–1) 38,332 72–82 155 September 21 @ Yankees 5–4 (10) Boehringer (3–2) Almanzar (0–1) 40,038 72–83 156 September 22 @ Yankees 8–1 Wells (15–10) Hentgen (15–10) 23,380 72–84 157 September 23 Orioles 3–2 Rodríguez (2–1) Clemens (21–7) Myers (44) 29,276 72–85 158 September 24 Orioles 9–3 Kamieniecki (10–6) Daal (1–1) 27,443 72–86 159 September 25 Orioles 4–3 Carpenter (3–7) Mussina (15–8) Escobar (14) 28,324 73–86 160 September 26 Red Sox 3–0 Williams (9–14) Henry (7–3) 34,155 74–86 161 September 27 Red Sox 12–5 Janzen (2–1) Corsi (5–3) 37,401 75–86 162 September 28 Red Sox 3–2 Plesac (2–4) Gordon (6–10) 40,251 76–86

Player stats

Batting

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average

Pos	Player	G	AB	H	HR	RBI	Avg.
C	Benito Santiago	97	341	83	13	42	.243
1B	Carlos Delgado	153	519	136	30	91	.262
2B	Carlos García	103	350	77	3	23	.220
3B	Ed Sprague Jr.	138	504	115	14	48	.228
SS	Alex Gonzalez	126	426	102	12	35	.239
LF	José Cruz Jr.	55	212	49	14	34	.231
CF	Otis Nixon	103	401	105	1	26	.262
RF	Orlando Merced	98	368	98	9	40	.266
DH	Joe Carter	157	612	143	21	102	.234

[5]

Other batters

Note: G = Games; AB = At bats; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average

Player	G	AB	H	HR	RBI	Avg.
Shawn Green	135	429	123	16	53	.287
Charlie O'Brien	69	225	49	4	27	.218
Jacob Brumfield	58	174	36	2	20	.207
Shannon Stewart	44	168	48	0	22	.286
Mariano Duncan	39	167	38	0	12	.228
Tilson Brito	49	126	28	0	8	.222
Tomás Pérez	40	123	24	0	9	.195
Juan Samuel	45	95	27	3	15	.284
Robert Pérez	37	78	15	2	6	.192
Rubén Sierra	14	48	10	1	5	.208
Tom Evans	12	38	11	1	2	.289
Felipe Crespo	12	28	8	1	5	.286
Rich Butler	7	14	4	0	2	.286
Julio Mosquera	3	8	2	0	0	.250
Sandy Martínez	3	2	0	0	0	.000

[5]

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Pat Hentgen	35	264.0	15	10	3.68	160
Roger Clemens	34	264.0	21	7	2.05	292
Woody Williams	31	194.2	9	14	4.35	124
Robert Person	23	128.1	5	10	5.61	99
Chris Carpenter	14	81.1	3	7	5.09	55
Juan Guzmán	13	60.0	3	6	4.95	52

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	IP	W	L	ERA	SO
Luis Andújar	17	50.0	0	6	6.48	28
Omar Daal	9	27.0	1	1	4.00	28
Huck Flener	8	17.1	0	1	9.87	9
Erik Hanson	3	15.0	0	0	7.80	18

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player	G	W	L	SV	ERA	SO
Kelvim Escobar	27	3	2	14	2.90	36
Paul Quantrill	77	6	7	5	1.94	56
Dan Plesac	73	2	4	1	3.58	61
Mike Timlin	38	3	2	9	2.87	36
Paul Spoljaric	37	0	3	3	3.19	43
Tim Crabtree	37	3	3	2	7.08	26
Marty Janzen	12	2	1	0	3.60	17
Carlos Almanzar	4	0	1	0	2.70	4
Bill Risley	3	0	1	0	8.31	2
Kenny Robinson	3	0	0	0	2.70	4

Award winners

• Roger Clemens, Pitcher of the Month Award, May
• Roger Clemens, Pitcher of the Month Award, August
• Roger Clemens, Cy Young Award
• Roger Clemens, MLB Leader, 21 Wins
• Roger Clemens, AL Strikeout Crown, 292 Strikeouts
• Roger Clemens, AL ERA Crown, 2.05
• Roger Clemens, American League Leader, Complete Games (9)
• Roger Clemens, American League Leader, Shutouts (3)
• Roger Clemens, American League Leader, Innings Pitched (264)

All-Star Game

• Roger Clemens, P
• Pat Hentgen, P

[6]

Farm system

See also: Minor League Baseball

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Syracuse SkyChiefs	International League	Garth Iorg
AA	Knoxville Smokies	Southern League	Omar Malavé
A	Dunedin Blue Jays	Florida State League	Dennis Holmberg
A	Hagerstown Suns	South Atlantic League	J. J. Cannon
A-Short Season	St. Catharines Stompers	New York–Penn League	Rocket Wheeler
Rookie	Medicine Hat Blue Jays	Pioneer League	Marty Pevey

[7]

References

1. "1997 Toronto Blue Jays Trades and Transactions". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 17, 2023.
2. "1997 Toronto Blue Jays Roster by Baseball Almanac".
3. "1997 Toronto Blue Jays Schedule by Baseball Almanac".
4. "1997 Toronto Blue Jays Trades and Transactions". baseball-reference.com. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
5. 1997 Toronto Blue Jays Statistics and Roster Baseball-Reference.com
6. Blue Jays All-Stars | bluejays.com: History
7. Johnson, Lloyd, and Wolff, Miles, ed., The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball, 3rd edition. Durham, North Carolina: Baseball America, 2007

External links

• 1997 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Reference
• 1997 Toronto Blue Jays at Baseball Almanac