Blue Jays: Combining generations for an All-Time lineup

If you were to make up a squad of the best Toronto Blue Jays to ever put on the uniform, who would make the team? Let the debate begin.

Like many of you, the other day I was scrolling through Twitter hoping that I might see some semblance of baseball news.

I eventually came across a post that said, “Your Favourite MLB team’s all-time lineup”, so I decided to play along. Some of the choices were fairly obvious to me, and others were quite the internal debate, and even led me to doing a little bit more research in some cases.

I also did my best to avoid recency bias, and as a 35 year old man who was borderline addicted to watching the Blue Jays in the early 90’s, I feel like I can do that fairly enough. I didn’t get to witness the early days of Blue Jays success in the 80’s first hand, but I feel that I’ve properly accounted for that era, although feel free to tell me if you feel otherwise. And since we’re only just seeing the start of the careers of guys like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, and more, I didn’t include them at all, even if they might make this fictional team someday.

I also kept things fairly simple in terms of a lineup. I’ve included a typical nine-man lineup with a designated hitter, and also a four-man bench (the 26th roster spot hasn’t officially begun, after all). I also attached a “peak” season to each player, and listed their stats from that year.

Of course, this is all just my opinion and you’re more than welcome to tell me how wrong I am in the comments section at the end. I’ll get to the pitching staff later this week as well, but for now, let’s have a look at who makes up my all-time Blue Jays lineup.

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Top Of The Order

1- Roberto Alomar (2B)- 1993

.326/.408/.492, 17 HR, 93 RBI, 35 doubles, 55 stolen bases, 6.1 bWAR

There’s a reason that Roberto Alomar was the first Blue Jay to earn a spot in the Hall of Fame. The man was a five-tool threat, and the Blue Jays were fortunate enough to enjoy some of his peak seasons while he was in Toronto.

2- Josh Donaldson (3B)- 2015

..297/.371/.568, 41 HR, 123 RBI, 41 doubles, 7.1 bWAR, MVP Award

The “Bringer of Rain” was everything the Blue Jays had hoped for and more, and was a huge reason that they went from a good team to a legitimate playoff contender. Donaldson became one of the most feared hitters in the American League after arriving in Toronto, and ended up winning the MVP in 2015, and followed it up with a 4th place finish in 2016.

3- George Bell (LF)- 1987

.308/.352/.605, 47 HR, 134 RBI, 32 doubles, 5.0 bWAR, MVP Award

I told you I wouldn’t forget about the generation or two before I was around to see it live for myself, and there’s no better place to start than George Bell. The first MVP in franchise history had a career year in 1987, leading the AL in RBI and Total Bases, also adding a Silver Slugger award to his collection. That generation of the Blue Jays may not have tasted World Series glory, but Bell and the crew took some important steps for the franchise, setting them up for what was to come.

The Heart Of The Order

4- Carlos Delgado (DH)- 2000

.344/.470/.664, 41 HR, 137 RBI, 57 doubles, 7.3 bWAR

Maybe I’m wrong in saying this, but I sometimes feel like Carlos Delgado doesn’t get the credit he deserves. Those of us that were watching him during his prime years as a Blue Jay are more than aware of how dominant he was, but it was pretty easy to lose focus during those tough seasons in franchise history.

Delgado had a nearly equally impressive season in 2003, but it was in 2000 that he really announced himself as a premier hitter in the American League. He flirted with the .400 mark for a while early in the year, but never stopped providing a source of power and on-base ability. There were several great DH candidates I could have used such as Edwin Encarnacion, or even Jose Canseco (remember 1998?), but I feel that Delgado is more than deserving of a spot on this all-time squad.

5- Jose Bautista (RF)- 2011

.302/.447/.608, 43 HR, 103 RBI, 132 walks, 8.3 bWAR

When Jose Bautista got to Spring Training in 2011, everyone was wondering if his breakout 54-home run season from 2010 was a fluke. He quickly showed the baseball world that he was for real, and his All-Star status wasn’t going anywhere.

He didn’t wasn’t able to match his career high in home runs, but Bautista was an all-around star in 2011, hitting for average, power, and sporting one of the strongest outfield throwing arms in the game. And it didn’t happen until a few years down the road, but “Joey Bats” was a central building block in helping the Blue Jays become a contender again.

6. John Olerud (1B)- 1993

.363/.473/.599, 24 HR, 107 RBI, 54 doubles, 7.8 bWAR

Can you believe that John Olerud hit fifth for the Blue Jays in 1993? Sure, you could make the argument that Cito Gaston could have moved him up in the order that year, but why fix something that isn’t broken? The Blue Jays were defending their World Series from 1992, and Olerud’s emergence into the AL batting title winner was a big reason they were able to retain their crown.

That season wasn’t a fluke for Olerud either, even if it was his best season as a big leaguer. He finished his career with a .295/.398/.465 slash line across 17 seasons.

The Bottom Three

7- Vernon Wells (CF)- 2006

.303/.357/.542, 32 HR, 106 RBI, 40 doubles, 17 SB, 6.2 bWAR

I could have easily gone with Vernon Wells’ 2003 season as well, but his 6.2 bWAR season in 2006 wins out for me. It also wasn’t easy to take Wells over someone like Devon White, but his well-rounded game was too much to pass up on.

I feel like Wells is a player that doesn’t always get the credit he deserves for what he accomplished as a Blue Jay, and it all comes back to the seven-year, 126 million dollar contract he signed in 2006. He wasn’t able to keep up the type of 5-tool production that had earned him that massive deal in the first place, but that doesn’t mean he wasn’t an incredibly talented player at his peak.

8- Tony Fernandez (SS)- 1987

.322/.379/.426, 5 HR, 67 RBI. 29 doubles, 32 SB, 5.1 bWAR

The late Tony Fernandez is still the best Blue Jays shortstop to ever put on the uniform, even if Bo Bichette looks like he could have the potential to take that title from him someday.

Fernandez ended up making four stops in Toronto throughout his career, but it was in 1987 when he was at his best as a 25-year-old. The slap-hitting switch-hitter was never a power threat, but his smooth defence, ability to hit for average, and his threat on the base paths were a big reason for the success of those 80’s Blue Jays teams, and even the repeat champ in ’93.

9- Russell Martin (C)- 2015

.240/.329/.458, 23 HR, 77 RBI, 23 doubles, 3.2 bWAR

If I’m being fair, Ernie Whitt had a better single season bWAR mark of 3.4 in 1983, but I decided to go with Martin here. Call that the recency bias if you like, but I felt like Martin’s numbers were slightly better even with the bWAR difference, so I’ll give the Canuck receiver the edge here by the slightest of margins.

In my mind, the biggest difference than Martin made was with the pitching staff. His veteran presence, game-calling abilities, and defensive gifts were enough to help move the needle for many young pitchers in Toronto in 2015, and I don’t think they could have made the postseason without him.