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2004 Toronto Blue Jays Season
The 2004 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's 28th season of Major League Baseball. It resulted in the Blue Jays finishing fifth in the American League East with a record of 67 wins and 94 losses, their worst record since 1980. The Blue Jays' radio play-by-play announcer, Tom Cheek, called every Blue Jays game from the team's inaugural contest on April 7, 1977, until June 3, 2004, when he took two games off following the death of his father – a streak of 4,306 consecutive regular season games and 41 postseason games. It was the team's first season where Ace is the sole mascot, following the removal of Diamond at the end of the previous season. Offseason *November 18, 2003: Ted Lilly was traded by the Oakland Athletics to the Toronto Blue Jays for Bobby Kielty. Regular season Summary The 2004 season was a disappointing year for the Blue Jays right from the beginning. They started the season 0–8 at SkyDome and never started a lengthy winning streak. Much of that w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 Major League Baseball postseason, 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 pla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games primarily at Rogers Centre in downtown Toronto. The name "Blue Jays" originates from the bird of the same name, and blue is also the traditional colour of Toronto's collegiate and professional sports teams including the Maple Leafs (ice hockey) and the Argonauts (Canadian football). In 1976, out of the over 4,000 suggestions, 154 people selected the name "Blue Jays." In addition, the team was originally owned by the Labatt Brewing Company, makers of the popular beer Labatt Blue. Colloquially nicknamed the "Jays", the team's official colours are royal blue, navy blue, red, and white. An expansion franchise, the club was founded in Toronto in 1977. Originally based at Exhibition Stadium, the team began playing its home games at SkyDome ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minor League
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in North America with regard to several organizations competing in various sports. They generally have lesser fan bases, much smaller revenues and salaries, and are used to develop players for bigger leagues. The minor league concept is a manifestation of the franchise system used in North American sports, whereby the group of major league teams in each sport is fixed for long periods between expansions or other adjustments, which only take place with the consent of the major league owners. In Europe, and many other parts of the world, association football(Soccer), basketball, american football, baseball, handball,hockey etc leagues have many divisions below the ''top-flight level'' as part of the football pyramid. In other parts of the worl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retired
Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their job due to health reasons. People may also retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when bodily conditions no longer allow the person to work any longer (by illness or accident) or as a result of legislation concerning their positions. In most countries, the idea of retirement is of recent origin, being introduced during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. Previously, low life expectancy, lack of social security and the absence of pension arrangements meant that most workers continued to work until their death. Germany was the first country to introduce retirement benefits in 1889. Nowadays, most developed countries have systems to provide pensions on retirement ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pat Hentgen
Patrick George Hentgen (born November 13, 1968) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, and currently a special assistant with the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Blue Jays, St. Louis Cardinals, and Baltimore Orioles from 1991 to 2004. In 1996, he won the American League (AL) Cy Young Award. Early life Hentgen was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1968. He attended Fraser High School in Fraser, Michigan, and was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fifth round of the 1986 Major League Baseball draft. He signed with the Blue Jays in June 1986."Pat Hentgen Stats" baseball-reference.com. Retrieved September 19, 2020. Professional baseball career Hentgen pitched in the minor leagues from 1986 to 1990. He then split the 1991 and 1992 s ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Justin Speier
Justin James Speier (born November 6, 1973) is an American former professional baseball pitcher in Major League Baseball. He attended Brophy College Preparatory in Phoenix, Arizona. Upon graduation from Brophy Prep, Speier attended the University of San Francisco where he played catcher for the Dons. He also attended Nicholls State University. Speier served in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. He is the son of former major league player and coach Chris Speier and the cousin of Gabe Speier, a pitcher currently with the Kansas City Royals. Speier threw a four-seam fastball from an unusual angle which could reach anywhere between 89 and 94 miles per hour. His success tended to be directly proportional to his fastball velocity, because the fastball set up his best strikeout pitch – a baffling, darting forkball, which caused great difficulty for hitters because of his unorthodox arm slot. Speier also threw a two-seamer and a slider. MLB career 1995–1999 After being chosen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Miguel Batista
Miguel Descartes Batista Jerez (born February 19, 1971) is a Dominican former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Florida Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Montreal Expos, Kansas City Royals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Washington Nationals, St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets and Atlanta Braves. Baseball career Arizona Diamondbacks Over his career, Batista played for eight teams and was utilized extensively as a starter and a reliever. His best seasons came in and with the Arizona Diamondbacks, when he went 11–8 and 10–9 with 3.36 and 3.54 ERAs respectively. He pitched shutout innings at Yankee Stadium in Game 5 of the 2001 World Series. He faced one batter in game seven of the 2001 World Series, getting the second out of the eighth inning before Randy Johnson finished the game. Toronto Blue Jays He signed a three-year $13.1-million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays prior to the seaso ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roy Halladay
Harry Leroy "Roy" Halladay III (May 14, 1977 – November 7, 2017) was an American professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies between 1998 and 2013. His nickname, "Doc", was coined by Toronto Blue Jays announcer Tom Cheek, and was a reference to Wild West gunslinger Doc Holliday. An eight-time All-Star, Halladay was one of the most dominant pitchers of his era. Known for his outstanding durability, he led the league in complete games seven times, the most of any pitcher whose career began after 1945. He also led the league in strikeout-to-walk ratio five times and innings pitched four times. Raised in Arvada, Colorado, Halladay pitched at Arvada West High School, before being drafted 17th overall by the Blue Jays in the 1995 MLB draft. He made his major league debut in 1998, nearly pitching a no-hitter in his second career start. After struggling in 2000, he was demoted to the minor leagues, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vernon Wells
Vernon Michael Wells III (born December 8, 1978) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and the New York Yankees. Wells has appeared on three All-Star teams in his career, been awarded three Gold Glove Awards, and one Silver Slugger Award. He is second all-time for the Blue Jays in career hits, doubles, runs, RBI and total bases, and fourth in home runs, behind Carlos Delgado, José Bautista, and Edwin Encarnación. Early years Wells was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, to Vernon Wells, Jr. and grew up in Arlington, Texas, where his family moved in 1988. His father played in the Canadian Football League and is an accomplished painter. In 1993, Wells entered Arlington's Bowie High School where he played quarterback on the football team and was an outfielder on the baseball team. In his senior year, he batted .565 with seven home runs and 20 runs batted ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carlos Delgado
Carlos Juan Delgado Hernández (born June 25, 1972) is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball primarily as a first baseman, from 1993 to 2009, most prominently as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays, where he was a member of the 1993 World Series-winning team, won the 2000 American League (AL) Hank Aaron Award, and was the 2003 AL RBI leader. He was also a two-time AL All-Star player and a three-time Silver Slugger Award winner during his tenure with the Blue Jays. Delgado holds the Major League Baseball record for career home runs by a Puerto Rican player with 473. He is one of only six players in Major League history to hit 30 home runs in ten consecutive seasons, becoming the fourth player to do so. During his twelve years with the Toronto Blue Jays, Delgado set many team records, including home runs (336), RBI (1,058), walks (827), slugging percentage (.556), on-base plus slugging (.949), runs (889), total bases ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Kielty
Robert Michael Kielty (last name pronounced KELT-ee) (born August 5, 1976) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played for the Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, and Boston Red Sox during a Major League Baseball (MLB) career that lasted from 2001 to 2007. In his final MLB season, Kielty won the 2007 World Series over the Colorado Rockies as a member of the Red Sox. College (1994–98) Kielty graduated from Canyon Springs High School (Moreno Valley, California) in 1994. After high school, he attended the University of Southern California from 1994 to 1995, Riverside City College from 1996 to 1997, and the University of Mississippi from 1997 to 1998. In 1998 Kielty played collegiate summer baseball for the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL). He was named league MVP after leading the league in batting average (.384) and RBI (45). Kielty was inducted into the CCBL Hall of Fame in 2005. Kielty was also named 1998 Su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ted Lilly
Theodore Roosevelt Lilly III (born January 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Lilly attended Yosemite High School in Oakhurst, California, and Fresno City College. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers. Professional career Minor leagues Lilly was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 23rd round of the 1996 MLB draft. After two seasons in the Dodgers farm system, he was traded (along with Peter Bergeron, Wilton Guerrero and Jonathan Tucker) to the Montreal Expos for Hiram Bocachica, Mark Grudzielanek and Carlos Pérez. Montreal Expos Lilly made his MLB debut for the Expos on May 14, 1999, against the Pittsburgh Pirates, pitching one inning in relief. He made his first MLB start on September 19 against the Atlanta Braves. He pitched in nine games for the Expos, with three starts. New York Yankees Lilly was traded to the New Yor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
