Toronto Blue Jays Team History

The City of Toronto had renovated Exhibition Stadium to accommodate Major League Baseball (MLB), in anticipation of the Giants relocating there, and continued to push for an MLB franchise. MLB awarded the City of Toronto an expansion franchise in 1976, along with Seattle, Washington. A group, headed by Labatt Breweries, with Imperial Trust and CIBC as minority owners, purchased the rights for the franchise from MLB for $7 million.

However, even after the franchises were awarded, the future of baseball in Toronto appeared uncertain. U.S. President Gerald Ford had attempted to put pressure on MLB to give Washington, D.C. an expansion franchise instead of Toronto. Washington had been without Major League Baseball since the Senators were moved to Arlington, Texas to become the Texas Rangers following the 1972 season. Following this development there was brief speculation by Metro Toronto chairman Paul Godfrey, among others, that Washington would be awarded Toronto’s American League franchise and Toronto would instead be awarded a National League expansion franchise. However, Ford’s attempts did not amount to anything and Toronto was allowed to keep its American League expansion franchise.

Rogers Centre, originally known as SkyDome is a multi-purpose stadium in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada situated next to the CN Tower near the shores of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989 on the former Railway Lands, it is home to the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball and the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. The stadium was renamed “Rogers Centre” following the purchase of the stadium by Rogers Communications, which also bought the Toronto Blue Jays, in 2005, but is still colloquially referred to as the Skydome.

The 1992 World Series was the first World Series ever with games played outside the United States, following the 1992 regular season. It pitted the American League champion Toronto Blue Jays against the National League champion Atlanta Braves. Toronto defeated Atlanta, four games to two, marking the first time a team based outside the United States won the World Series.

The 1993 World Series was a best-of-seven playoff series to determine the champion of Major League Baseball for the 1993 season. It pitted the defending champion Toronto Blue Jays of the American League against the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies. With Toronto ahead three games to two in the Series, Joe Carter hit a game-winning three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 6 to win the series for Toronto, its second consecutive championship the first repeaters since the 1977 – 1978 Yankees. This was only the second Series concluded by such a home run the first was in the 1960 World Series on a Bill Mazeroski home run for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and the first such occasion where a come-from-behind walk-off home run won a World Series. Larry Andersen was the only member of the 1993 Phillies to also play for them in the 1983 World Series, although Darren Daulton was a late season call-up in 1983, but only served as the bullpen catcher in the World Series. Fittingly, in Daulton’s first ever MLB game, he was a catcher for Larry Andersen.