Blue Jays All-Time WAR Leaders- Pitchers

The Toronto Blue Jays played their first franchise game on April 07th, 1977, some 42 years later, we look at the Top 10 WAR pitchers in franchise history.

According to Fangraphs, WAR is defined as Wins Above Replacement (WAR) is an attempt by the sabermetric baseball community to summarize a player’s total contributions to their team in one statistic. You should always use more than one metric at a time when evaluating players, but WAR is all-inclusive and provides a useful reference point for comparing players.

Toronto has seen 405 different pitchers toe the rubber in an MLB game since the organization’s existence.

The Blue Jays have seen the likes of Roger Clemens, Dave Stewart and David Cone all don the blue and white at one time or another, however, in order to be on the All-Time WAR list, you need to couple production with longevity. Will any of the above trio crack the Top 10 despite their short tenure in Toronto?

The All-Time franchise leader in wins is Dave Stieb with 175 victories, 27 more than the late Roy Halladay, how will both hurlers fare on the Blue Jays WAR leaderboard?

Without further ado, here are your Top 10 WAR contributors for pitchers in Toronto Blue Jays franchise history.

#10- Doyle Alexander- 13.6 WAR

The Blue Jays signed Doyle Alexander after the hurler was released by the New York Yankees in the summer of 1983. The pitcher would spend parts of four seasons in Toronto winning 17 games in consecutive campaigns.

The friendly confines of Exhibition Stadium seemed to bring the best out of Alexander, the veteran accumulated his two best WAR seasons while pitching north of the border. In 1984, Alexander went 17-6 with a 3.13 earned run average while putting up a 6.1 WAR in 35 starts. In 106 games with Toronto, the former 9th round pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers totaled a 13.6 WAR. Alexander ranks 10th on the Blue Jays all-time WAR list.

Alexander pitched in two forgettable postseason games for the Blue Jays in 1985. The Royals would obliterate the hurler for 10 runs scattered over 14 hits in 10.1 playoff innings. The Jays would eventually lose the ALCS series in seven games to Kansas City.

In the summer of 1986, the Blue Jays would deal Alexander to the Atlanta Braves for pitcher Duane Ward. Alexander would play for eight different teams compiling a career 34.7 WAR over the course of his 19-year career.

#9- David Wells- 15.0 WAR

David Wells began his MLB career with the Blue Jays after being selected in the 2nd round of the 1982 draft. Wells went 30th overall while Barry Bonds went 39th overall in that draft class to the San Francisco Giants. Bonds would opt not to sign and attend Arizona State University.

Boomer would spend six seasons with the Jays before being released in the spring of 1993. He would latch on with the Detroit Tigers days later.

Wells would reunite with the Blue Jays after the team acquired him back in the Rogers Clemens deal with the Yankees in 1999. During his two stints in Toronto, Wells compiled a 15.0 WAR in 306 games that included 138 starts.

His best season statistically would come in 2000 when the burly hurler went 20-8 with a 4.11 earned run average earning a 4.8 WAR in 35 starts. He finished third in AL Cy Young voting only behind Pedro Martinez and Tim Hudson.

During his 21-year career, Wells totaled an impressive 53.8 WAR in 660 career games on the bump.

#8- Tom Henke- 16.9 WAR

Tom Henke was affectionately nicknamed “The Terminator” due to his ability to close out games with sheer dominance. Henke was a free agent compensation pick for the Blue Jays in the winter of 1985 from the Texas Rangers.

For the next eight seasons in Toronto, Henke would rack up a franchise record 217 saves, he would also only sport an earned run average north of 3.00 on one occasion during his Blue Jays tenure. In 1989, Henke earned a career-high 3.4 WAR due to a minuscule 1.92 earned run average with 20 saves.

Henke would eventually head back to Texas as a free agent after the conclusion of Blue Jays World Series Championship season in 1992. Henke’s departure would open the door for Duane Ward to cut his teeth as the closer in Toronto.

The big right-hander would accumulate a career 23.0 WAR with three teams over a 14-year career. His final season with the Cardinals before he retired, Henke posted a 1.82 earned run average with 36 saves and was an All-Star, talk about going out on your own terms.

#6- Juan Guzman- 21.1 WAR

Juan Guzman was dealt to the Blue Jays from the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for Mike Sharperson in the fall of 1987. Guzman would make his MLB debut with the Blue Jays in 1991 finishing 2nd in Rookie of the Year voting, second to only Chuck Knoblauch. Toronto rookies Mike Timlin and Mark Whiten (traded mid-way through the season) would also finish tied for sixth in the rookie voting.

Guzman’s best season came in 1996 when he went 11-8 with a 2.93 earned run average with a 6.8 WAR in 27 starts for the Jays. The right-hander would remain in Toronto for eight seasons totaling a 76-62 record with a 4.07 earned run average in 195 career starts.

The Blue Jays would deal Guzman to the Baltimore Orioles at the trade deadline in 1998 for Shannon Carter and Nerio Rodriguez. Neither players would amount to anything with Carter surpassing Triple-A.

Over the course of his 10-year career with the Jays, Orioles, Reds and Devil Rays, Guzman racked up a 24.6 WAR, albeit most of it was during his Blue Jays days.

#5- Jim Clancy- 25.1 WAR

Jim Clancy was an original Blue Jay, drafted sixth overall in the expansion draft from the Texas Rangers. Clancy was the third player selected by the Blue Jays with only Bob Bailor and Jerry Garvin going before him. Clancy along with Ernie Whitt are arguably the two most successful Blue Jays players from the expansion era.

Clancy would spend over 12-seasons north of the border pitching in 472 games including 381 starts. The hurlers 25.1 WAR total was complemented by consistent production and longevity with the organization. Clancy was a staple in the Blue Jays rotation for many years early on.

In 1980, Clancy went 13-16 with a 3.30 earned run average accumulating a career-high 5.6 WAR in 250.2 innings of work that season. Clancy made one All-Star appearance during his career representing the Blue Jays in 1982 at the Mid-Summer Classic.

Clancy would join the Houston Astros following the 1988 season as a free agent. He would finish his career with 140 wins pitching for the Astros and Braves following his departure from Toronto. Clancy was worth a 21.1 WAR after 15 MLB seasons, his career WAR total actually decreased once he left the great white north.

#4- Pat Hentgen- 26.8 WAR

The Blue Jays drafted Pat Henten in the fifth round of the 1986 amateur draft, luckily Hentgen panned out because the four players selected before him amounted to nothing. Going before Hentgen were these not-so-household names: Earl Sanders (1st Rd.) Steve Cummings (2nd Rd.) Andy Dziadkowiec (3rd Rd.) and Xavier Hernandez (4th Rd.). Can you say, swing and a miss?

Hentgen would spend a decade with the Blue Jays becoming one of the franchises all-time greats. The hurler had a career year in 1996 winning the AL Cy Young award after going 20-10 with a 3.22 earned run average in 35 starts. His 8.6 WAR season came on the heels of a disappointing 4th place finish for the team.

The three-time All-Star would conclude his Blue Jays career with a 107-85 record with a 4.28 earned run average, his 26.8 WAR is good enough for fourth place all-time in franchise history. The Jays would trade Hentgen along with Canadian pitcher Paul Spoljaric to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1999.

Hentgen would return to the Blue Jays in his final season as a major leaguer in 2004, he would retire with a career WAR of 33.0 after 14 MLB campaigns.

#3- Jimmy Key- 29.9 WAR

Southpaw Jimmy Key was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the third round of the 1982 amateur draft out of Clemson University. The same Alma mater as former Blue Jays Billy Koch and Dominic Leone.

Key would remain with the organization for nine seasons making 317 appearances including 250 starts on the Blue Jays bump. In 1987, Key finished second in AL Cy Young voting, losing out on the honour to Roger Clemens.

Key went 17-8 with an impressive 2.76 earned run average, good enough for a career-high 7.4 WAR in 261 innings of work. The five-time All-Star finished second twice and fourth once in the Cy Young race during his MLB career.

The soft-tossing lefty ended his Blue Jays tenure with a 116-81 record with a 3.42 earned run average and a 29.9 WAR. Key is the most decorated lefty in Blue Jays history and sports the highest WAR total among southpaws. Key hit the open market following the 1992 championship season and joined the Yankees as a free agent.

Key concluded his 15-year career with a lofty 49.2 WAR tally and ranks fourth in Blue Jays victories.

#2- Roy Halladay- 48.5 WAR

Roy Halladay is arguably the best pitcher in Blue Jays history although many long-time Blue Jays faithful would make a valid argument for Dave Stieb. Regardless it is very close. The Jays selected “Doc” in the first round, 17th overall in the 1995 amateur draft. Halladay has the highest WAR total of any player selected in the first round from his draft class. Former Rockies slugger and eighth overall pick Todd Helton is a close second with a career 61.2 WAR.

Halladay was the consummate professional during his 12-year Blue Jays reign. The big right-hander won a pair of Cy Young awards during his career, his first coming in a Blue Jays uniform in 2003.

Halladay went 22-7 with a 3.25 earned run average while fanning 204 and posting an 8.1 WAR in 36 starts over 266 innings. While a Blue Jay’ Halladay went 148-76 with a 3.43 earned run average and a 48.5 WAR.

Doc was traded to the Phillies in the winter of 2009 due to his desire to play for a contender. Halladay would call it a career after four seasons in the City of Brotherly love retiring with a 65.5 WAR.

Halladay tragically died in an aircraft accident in the Gulf of Mexico in November 2017. The hurler is on the cusp of being inducted into Cooperstown this summer and will undoubtedly enter the Hall of Fame as a Blue Jay.

#1- Dave Stieb- 57.2 WAR

Dave Stieb may never get inducted into the Hall of Fame but he holds the Blue Jays franchise record among hurlers for the highest WAR total. Stieb spent his entire career with the Blue Jays with the exception of four games with the White Sox in 1993. The right-hander accumulated a robust 57.2 WAR total during his days in Toronto.

In 15 years with the Blue Jays, Stieb was 175-134 with a 3.42 earned run average while striking out 1608 batters in 439 games. In 1984, Stieb went 16-8 with a 2.83 earned run average and an 8.0 WAR in 267 innings pitched. The seven-time All-Star finished seventh in AL Cy Young voting that season.

Stieb tossed the Blue Jays first franchise no-hitter in 1990 after three prior failed attempts. The hard-luck hurler was down to the final out three previous times but could not seal the deal until that fateful day versus the Cleveland Indians.

Stieb retired from baseball after his 1993 season in Chicago, the pitcher would remain out of the game for four years before attempting a comeback with the Blue Jays in 1998. Stieb would make 19 appearances including three starts going 1-2 with a 4.83 earned run average.

Stieb will always be remembered for his bulldog mentality on the mound and his trademark mustache. A true warrior who was all business.