Who are the last 7 Blue Jays players to have 100 RBI in a single season?

It's fair to make the claim the Blue Jays have underachieved in general this season, especially when you consider the talent on the roster. Even allowing for injuries, they shouldn't be ranked just tied-16th in scoring.

Perhaps serving as the encapsulation of this underachievement on an individual basis -- fair or not -- is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. And that's despite leading the team in hits, home runs and RBI at the time of writing.

In respect of RBI specifically, Guerrero Jr.'s total of 79 through 134 team games, has him unlikely to reach 100 on the season. (Even though someone with his talent does has the potential to hit 21 over the remaining 28 games.)

This leads to the question of who were the last Blue Jays to reach 100 RBI in a season? Here's a look over the previous 10 years, to see who achieved this feat.

NB - All statistics up to and including August 30

Hernández, Guerrero, Bichette & Semien (all in 2021)

When it comes to the 2021 season, it's a case of 'what if' with the Blue Jays. They ended up missing out on the playoffs by just one game, despite winning 91 times during the regular season.

This is a ballclub which, if they'd qualified, would have been a genuine concern for any team which faced them. They were stacked, as evidenced by scoring the third-most runs in the Majors and having the fifth-best run differential.

One of the main highlights of this, was a lineup which had four players reach the 100-RBI plateau. Yes -- you read that right -- four players.

The Blue Jays were the first team to have four players each reach 100 RBI since the Atlanta Braves, back in 2003. The only other team to achieve this feat to date during the 21st century are the Los Angeles Angels, in 2000.

From a historical perspective the most ever is five players, achieved by the Yankees in 1936. This updated version of 'Murderers' Row' included Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Tony Lazzeri, Bill Dickey and George Selkirk.

Back to 2021, leading the way for the Blue Jays was Teoscar Hernández, with a team -- and career - high 116 RBI. In fact, it was a career-year for Hernández in general, setting single-season bests in hits, home runs, batting average, OBP and runs scored. (He also earned his first All-Star selection.)

Next was Guerrero Jr., with 111 RBI. However, this only told part of the story for a player who, in any other year would have been AL MVP. (He eventually finished second in voting, behind a certain Shohei Ohtani.)

The three-time All-Star was a monster at the plate in 2021, leading the AL in OBP, slugging percentage, OPS and OPS+ while pacing the Majors as a whole in home runs, total bases and runs scored. This was expected to become the norm for him, but as of now the concern is that this will prove to be the exception instead.

Rounding out the foursome were Bo Bichette and Marcus Semien, who both hit 102 RBI. The 2021 campaign representing the coming out party for Bichette, who hasn't stopped hitting since, while Semien used his career year in Toronto to earn a seven-year, $175 million US deal with the Rangers.

Edwin Encarnación (2016)

When is 89 better than 91? When comparing the Blue Jays' 2016 season to their 2021 campaign.

That's because, despite the Blue Jays winning less games in 2016, they actually qualified for the playoffs. They also ranked lower in scoring at ninth, although they did again finish fifth-best in run differential. (Albeit at just +93 compared to +183 in 2021.)

Continuing this theme on an individual level, the Blue Jays had just one player reach 100 RBI compared to the four in 2021. But what an effort it turned out to be, by Edwin Encarnación.

For a start, Encarnación's 127 RBI surpassed Hernández's 116 in 2021. In addition, the former's RBI total led the AL in 2016, with what was a single-season career-high.

In this respect, 2016 was arguably the three-time All-Star's best overall season in his 16-year Major League career. He also set single-season bests with 158 hits, 318 total bases and 99 runs, while tying another career-high of 42 home runs.

Having said (written) all this, Josh Donaldson was actually the Blue Jays' best offensive player in 2016. He might have just missed out on 100 RBI by one, but he led the team in a variety of other categories.

This included hits, walks, runs, slash line and OPS, as well as producing a fantastic 7.4 WAR which doubled Encarnación in second place. While Donaldson didn't repeat his AL MVP award of the previous year, he still finished fourth in voting and won his second consecutive Silver Slugger Award.

Ultimately though as a team, the Blue Jays would fall short of their goal to win a third World Series. After beating the Orioles in the single-elimination Wild Card game and sweeping the Rangers 3-0 in the ALDS, they couldn't handle the then-Indians as they lost 4-1 in the ALCS.

Josh Donaldson, José Bautista & Encarnación (all in 2015)

There are many who consider the 2015 Blue Jays to be the best version since their World Series teams of 1992 and 1993. This is understandable for a variety of reasons.

The 93-69 record stands as the Blue Jay' best since those 1992-93 teams. They also easily led the Majors with 891 runs (127 ahead of second place) and a +221 run differential (+99 more than second place).

On an individual level, Donaldson led the way with the best season of his (to date) 13-year Major League career. He finished first on the team in hits, home runs, doubles, batting average, slugging percentage, OPS and with a remarkable 8.8 WAR.

On a league-wide level, the two-time Silver Slugger led the AL in RBI and total bases, and the Majors as a whole in runs. He capped the season by deservedly being named AL MVP.

Donaldson was also one of three Blue Jays players to reach 100 RBI, leading the team with 123. He was joined by José Bautista with 114 and Encarnación with 111.

This made for a potent trio, with all three players recording a +.900 OPS. Alas though, they couldn't produce a World Series champion, despite having the most dangerous team in the Majors.

That's because the Blue Jays actually had two wins less than the AL-leading Royals, which made all the difference come the ALCS. The Blue Jays would go on to lose the decisive sixth game in Kansas City -- albeit just 4-3 -- leaving fans wondering about what could have been.