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2017 Toronto Blue Jays Season
The 2017 Toronto Blue Jays season was the 41st season of the franchise in the American League East division of Major League Baseball, and the 27th full season of play (28th overall) at Rogers Centre. For the first time since the 2014 season, the Blue Jays failed to make it to the postseason, finishing fourth in the AL East with a 76–86 record. Offseason The Blue Jays offseason began on October 19, 2016, when they were eliminated by the Cleveland Indians in the American League Championship Series. On October 24, general manager Ross Atkins held a press conference at the Rogers Centre to discuss the team's offseason plans. Atkins stated that the club would likely extend qualifying offers to pending free agents José Bautista and Edwin Encarnación, and pick up Jason Grilli's $3 million contract option for the 2017 season. He also told reporters that the team could explore stretching out Joe Biagini and using him as a starting pitcher, and that Roberto Osuna would remain a re ...
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American League East
The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (NL). This division was created before the start of the season along with the American League West division. Before that time, each league consisted of 10 teams without any divisions. Four of the division's five teams are located in the Eastern United States, with the other team, the Toronto Blue Jays, in Eastern Canada. It is currently the only division that contains a non-American team. At the end of the MLB season, the team with the best record in the division earns one of the AL's six playoff spots. The most recent team to win this division was the New York Yankees in . History Baseball writers have long posited that the American League East is the toughest division in MLB; during its 50-year existence, an AL East team has gone on to play in the World Series 27 times, a ...
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Joe Siddall
Joseph Todd Siddall (born October 25, 1967) is a Canadian former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos, Florida Marlins, and Detroit Tigers. Professional career Siddall was signed by the Montreal Expos as an amateur free agent in 1987. He played at various levels of their minor league organization before making his MLB debut in 1993. Siddall also appeared in the majors for the Expos in 1995, and became a free agent in the offseason. He signed with the Florida Marlins on November 30, 1995, and appeared in 16 MLB games during the 1996 season. He returned to the Expos minor league organization in 1997 before signing with the Detroit Tigers on December 2, 1997. He made his final MLB appearances in 1998 for the Tigers. In 1999 Siddall played in the Tigers minor league organization, and played his final season of professional baseball in 2000 with the Boston Red Sox minor league organization. Broadcasting career On March 1, 201 ...
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Kevin Pillar
Kevin Andrew Pillar () (born January 4, 1989) is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, San Francisco Giants, Boston Red Sox, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers. Pillar was an All-American center fielder in college. He set the NCAA Division II record with a 54-game hitting streak in 2010, and established his school's all-time record with a career batting average of .367. Pillar was drafted by the Blue Jays in the 32nd round (979th overall) of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. In 2011, he batted .347, winning the Appalachian League batting title and leading the organization in batting average in his first minor league season, and was named an Appalachian League All-Star. In 2012 Pillar batted .323, while stealing 51 bases (second-most in the organization), and was named the Midwest League MVP, a mid-season and a post-season All-Star, the best hitting prospe ...
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Eric Owens (baseball)
Eric Blake Owens (born February 3, 1971) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played for five Major League Baseball (MLB) teams from 1995 through 2003. Career Owens was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth round of the 1992 MLB draft out of Ferrum College, where he played baseball and football. As a ballplayer, he led his team into the NCAA Regionals three times and was named to the All-America first team in 1991 and 1992, including a pair of South Regional runner-up finishes in both seasons, while earning Dixie Conference Player of the Year honors in 1992. Owens left Ferrum the owner of seven school records, including marks for career batting average (.430), stolen bases (68) and triples (18), while batting over .400 in each of his three college seasons. Owens made his MLB debut with the Reds in 1995, playing with them for three seasons before joining the Milwaukee Brewers (1998), San Diego Padres (1999–2000), Florida Marlins (2001–2002) a ...
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Roberto Osuna
Roberto Osuna Quintero Jr. (born February 7, 1995) is a Mexican professional baseball pitcher for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros. Osuna was signed by the Blue Jays out of Mexico as a 16-year-old, and played three seasons in their minor league organization. On April 8, 2015, at 20 years of age he became the youngest pitcher to appear in a game for the organization, and the first player born in 1995 to play in Major League Baseball. In 2017 he was an American League All Star. In 2018, he was suspended for 75 games for violating the league's policy on domestic assault. In 2019 he led the American League with 38 saves. Early life Osuna was born in Juan José Ríos, Sinaloa, Mexico. At age 11 he dropped out of school to pick vegetables to help support his family. When he was 16 years old the Toronto Blue Jays signed him with a $1.5 million signing ...
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Joe Biagini
Joseph Carlo Biagini (born May 29, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Blue Jays, Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs. The San Francisco Giants selected Biagini in the 26th round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. He made his MLB debut in 2016. High school and college Biagini attended The King's Academy in Sunnyvale, California. After the graduation, he attended the College of San Mateo and later the University of California, Davis. While attending the College of San Mateo in 2010, Biagini underwent Tommy John surgery. After the 2011 season, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Professional career San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants selected Biagini in the 26th round of the 2011 Major League Baseball draft. He made his professional debut with the Class-A Augusta GreenJackets in 2012. In nine starts with ...
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Jason Grilli
Jason Michael Grilli (born November 11, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers, Colorado Rockies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Atlanta Braves, Toronto Blue Jays, and Texas Rangers. Taken as the fourth overall selection of the 1997 MLB draft by the San Francisco Giants, Grilli was one of the top starting pitcher prospects in all of Minor League Baseball, ranked 54th in 1998 and 44th in 1999. The Giants traded him to the Florida Marlins in 1999, for whom he debuted on May 11, 2000. In 2011, Grilli's career took off as a relief pitcher with the Pittsburgh Pirates. That year, he carried a 2.48 earned run average (ERA) and 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings (K/9) rate in 32 innings pitched (IP), and further improved in 2012, when his strikeout rate climbed to 13.8. In 2013, Grilli made his first All-Star team and became Pittsburgh's clos ...
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Edwin Encarnación
Edwin Elpidio Encarnación (born January 7, 1983) is a Dominican former professional baseball designated hitter, third baseman and first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds, Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, and Chicago White Sox. Encarnación is a three-time All-Star. Early life Encarnación was born in the Dominican Republic to Elpidio Encarnación, a track and field coach, and Mireya Rivera. He is the third of three sons, including Richard and Julio, and four children, including younger sister, Evelin. Encarnación also had twelve half-siblings via his father. Encarnación split time as a high school student between his native country and Puerto Rico after his father took a job coaching at a Puerto Rican college. His Puerto Rican residence made him eligible for the Major League Baseball draft. Professional career Cincinnati Reds The Texas Rangers selected Encarnación in the ninth roun ...
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José Bautista
José Antonio Bautista Santos (born October 19, 1980), nicknamed "Joey Bats", is a Dominican special advisor for the general manager of the Leones del Escogido and former professional baseball right fielder and third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates, Toronto Blue Jays, Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, and Philadelphia Phillies. Bautista's professional career began when the Pittsburgh Pirates selected him in the 20th round of the 2000 MLB draft. He played for four different clubs before joining the Blue Jays in . In , he became the 26th member of the 50 home run club, while leading MLB in home runs for the first of two consecutive seasons. From 2010–, Bautista hit more home runs than any player in the major leagues. An MLB All-Star selection six consecutive times, he won three Silver Slugger Awards and two Hank Aaron Awards. In addition, he received the American L ...
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2016 American League Championship Series
The 2016 American League Championship Series (ALCS) was a best-of-seven playoff pitting the Toronto Blue Jays against the Cleveland Indians for the American League (AL) pennant and the right to play in the 2016 World Series against the Chicago Cubs. The Indians had home-field advantage for the series because the Blue Jays qualified as a wild-card team. The Indians defeated the Blue Jays four games to one. The series was the 47th in league history. TBS televised all games in the United States, with Sportsnet, a property of Toronto Blue Jays owner Rogers Communications, airing all games in Canada using the TBS feed. The Indians would go on to lose to the Chicago Cubs in the World Series in seven games, after squandering a 3–1 series lead. Background This was Toronto's second consecutive ALCS appearance and seventh overall. The team lost the 2015 American League Championship Series to the eventual World Series champion Kansas City Royals. The Blue Jays had previously made co ...
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2016 Cleveland Indians Season
The 2016 Cleveland Indians season was the 116th season for the franchise and the 23rd season at Progressive Field. The Indians won the American League Central Division for the first time since 2007 and also beat the Boston Red Sox in the Division Series for their first playoff win in nine years. They defeated the Toronto Blue Jays in five games in the American League Championship Series before losing to the Chicago Cubs in seven games after blowing a 3-1 series lead in the 2016 World Series. This was their first appearance in the World Series since 1997. Regular season Opening day starting lineup Tuesday, April 5, 2016 vs Boston Red Sox Starting Pitcher: Corey Kluber April The Cleveland Indians opened up their 2016 season with a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox at Progressive Field. Opening Day was scheduled for April 4, but was postponed due to a mixture of rain and snow until April 5. The Indians lost the opener 6-2. They would get their first win a day l ...
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2017 Major League Baseball Postseason
The 2017 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2017 season. The winners of the League Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series. This was the first edition of the postseason in which home field advantage in the World Series was awarded to the team with the better regular season record, rather than the winner of the MLB All-Star Game. In the American League, the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox returned for the second year in a row, the Houston Astros and New York Yankees returned for the second time in three years, and the Minnesota Twins made their first appearance since 2010. This was the first of what is currently six consecutive postseason appearances for both the Astros and Yankees. In the National League, the Washington Nationals returned for the fourth time in six years, the Los Angeles Dodgers made their fifth straigh ...
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