Jim Clancy, former Blue Jays star pitcher, passes away at age 69

A member of the 1985 AL East division champion Toronto Blue Jays has died. Jim Clancy a Chicago, Illinois native has passed away at age 69, according to a social media post put out by the team on Monday. 

Clancy was a member of the Blue Jays for 12 years, beginning his career in Major League Baseball the same year the Blue Jays began theirs. A sixth overall selection in the 1976 MLB expansion draft, after the Rangers left him unprotected. They saw him as a young minor leaguer who couldn’t find the strike zone. All the Blue Jays saw was a kid who could throw the heat, “That boy could throw a ripe strawberry through a locomotive,” Jays pitching coach Bob Miller put it at the time.

Clancy made his debut on July 26, 1977. He gave up five earned runs over two innings in a loss to the Texas Rangers, but things would only get better for there for Clancy and the Blue Jays.

He broke out in 1980 at 24-years-old going 13-16 with a 3.30 ERA with 152 strikeouts in his first season throwing over 200 innings, finishing with 250.2. In 1981 he was Toronto’s Opening Day starter and in 1982, Clancy was an All-Star for the first and only time in his career. He started 40 games that season, finishing 11 of them throwing 266.2 innings with an ERA+ of 121. He went 16-14 with a 3.71 ERA and 139 strikeouts. 

Along with Dave Stieb, Clancy was an anchor in the rotation for the young Blue Jays who were becoming increasingly competitive in the early 1980’s and in 1985, he helped the Blue Jays capture their first AL East crown. Clancy had a 3.78 ERA that season, throwing 128.2 innings in 23 games. Unfortunately, he was battling injuries all season and threw just one inning in the playoffs, allowing one run, in the Blue Jays seven game series loss against the Kansas City Royals.

 Clancy played three more seasons in Toronto with both 1986 and 1987 being very good years for the veteran entering his 30’s. He had a combined 8.5 bWAR starting 71 games, finishing 11 of them with four shutouts. He pitched 460.2 innings with a 3.73 ERA and 306 strikeouts.

 But after a disappointing 1988 season, Clancy left the Blue Jays as a free agent and signed with the Houston Astros where he played until 1991. At that years deadline, he was traded to Atlanta who were in the middle of a pennant chase. While Clancy wasn’t particularly effective down the stretch for the Braves, they would go on to win the AL West, and beat the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NLCS.

Clancy worked 4.1 innings out of the bullpen for the Braves in the ‘91 World Series. He got the final out in the top of the 12th before Atlanta walked off the Twins in Game Four of the series. It would go down as Clancy’s first ever post-season victory, in what would be his final year in the big leagues. He also pitched two innings in Game Three and two innings in Game Five, giving up an earned run in each appearance, finishing the series with two strikeouts, three hits allowed and two earned runs in 4.1 innings pitched, but the Braves fell to the Twins in seven games. 

Over his career, Clancy had a 140-167 record with a 4.23 ERA and 1,422 strikeouts and will forever fondly be remembered as a key member of Toronto’s starting rotation that carried the team from the depth of the expansion years, right to the top of the AL East division.  He has the fifth higest pitching war (24.8) of any player to ever don the Blue Jays jersey.

From everyone at Jays Journal our condolences go out to the family and friends of Jim Clancy.