The Medicine Hat Blue Jays were a
Rookie League affiliate of the
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 ...
, playing in the
Pioneer League and located in the city of
Medicine Hat
Medicine Hat is a city in Southern Alberta, southeast Alberta, Canada. It is located along the South Saskatchewan River. It is approximately east of Lethbridge and southeast of Calgary. This city and the adjacent Town of Redcliff, Alberta, ...
,
Alberta
Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
, Canada. They played a total of 25 seasons; 1978 through 2002. Their home field was
Athletic Park.
History
Over the years, the Medicine Hat club generally struggled on the field and with attendance, but the Jays did have some noteworthy seasons. In 1982, they captured their only championship. They reached the championship series again in 1995 but lost the title to the
Helena Brewers
The Helena Brewers were a Minor League Baseball team in the Pioneer League located in Helena, Montana, from 1978 to 2018. The team played their home games at Kindrick Legion Field, which was built in 1939. They were affiliated with the Milwauke ...
. The Blue Jays only reached the playoffs one other time, losing to the
Great Falls Dodgers
Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements
* Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size
* Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent
People
* List of people known as "the Great"
*Artel Great (born ...
in 2000.
The team arrived in Medicine Hat in 1977, playing as the
Medicine Hat A's
The Medicine Hat A's were a Rookie League affiliate of the Oakland Athletics, playing in the Pioneer Baseball League, Pioneer League and located in the Canada, Canadian city of Medicine Hat, Alberta. They played for a single season, 1977, and thei ...
, affiliated with the
Oakland A's
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
. The team had relocated from
Boise
Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown area's ...
,
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...
, where they had played two seasons as the
Boise A's in the
Northwest League
The Northwest League is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Pacific Northwest, Northwestern United States and Western Canada. A Class A Short Season league for most of its history, the league was promoted to High-A as part of Maj ...
. After the 2002 season, Toronto ended their affiliation with the club (switching to the
Pulaski Blue Jays
Pulaski may refer to:
Places
* Pulaski Heights, a section of the city of Little Rock, Arkansas
* Pulaski Shoal, an underwater landform west of the Florida Keys
* Pulaski, Georgia, a town
* Pulaski Square, one of the "Squares of Savannah" in th ...
), and the Pioneer League left Medicine Hat.
Notable alumni
Over the years, some of the most notable players to wear a Medicine Hat uniform included:
*
Chris Carpenter
Christopher John Carpenter (born April 27, 1975) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals from 1997 to 2012. A Cy Young Award win ...
*
David Wells
David Lee Wells (born May 20, 1963) is an American former baseball pitcher who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for nine teams, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees. Nicknamed "Boomer", Wells was considered on ...
*
Lloyd Moseby
Lloyd Anthony Moseby (born November 5, 1959) is an American former Major League Baseball player. A center fielder, and good all-around athlete, Moseby's nickname, Shaker, was said to stem from his ability to get away from or "shake" players who at ...
*
Fred Manrique
Fred Eloy Manrique Reyes an-RE-kay(born November 5, 1961) is a former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Toronto Blue Jays (1981, 1984), Montreal Expos (1985), St. Louis Cardinals (1986), Chicago White Sox (1987–89), Tex ...
*
John Cerutti
John Joseph Cerutti (April 28, 1960 – October 3, 2004) was an Americans, American left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays and Detroit Tigers between 1985 and 1991, and was later a color commentator, broadcaster for ...
*
Gustavo Chacín
*
Randy Knorr
Randy Duane Knorr (born November 12, 1968) is an American professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He is currently the catching coordinator for the Washington Nationals. Knorr is a former catcher in Major League Baseball who played for th ...
*
Jimmy Key
James Edward Key (born April 22, 1961) is a former left-handed starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Toronto Blue Jays (1984–1992), New York Yankees (1993–1996), and Baltimore Orioles (1997–1998). His best personal y ...
*
Pat Borders
*
Mark Eichhorn
Mark Anthony Eichhorn (born November 21, 1960) is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher best known for his tenure with the Toronto Blue Jays in the late 1980s and the early 1990s when he often served as a middle reliever/set-up man for All-Star ...
*
Mike Timlin
Michael August Timlin (; born March 10, 1966) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. Timlin played on four World Series championship teams in an 18-year career; the 1992 Toronto Blue Jays, 1993 Toronto Blue Jays, 2004 Bos ...
*
Jay Gibbons
Jay Jonathan Gibbons (born March 2, 1977) is an American former professional baseball right fielder in Major League Baseball.
He played college baseball at California State University, Los Angeles and in the Major Leagues for the Baltimore Oriole ...
(won the league's Triple Crown in 1998)
* Greg Morrison (won the league's Triple Crown in 1997)
See also
*
Medicine Hat Blue Jays players
Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...
Notes
References
{{Reflist
External links
baseball-reference.com– Medicine Hat minor league teams
Medicine Hat Blue JaysPioneer League baseball
Baseball teams in Alberta
Defunct baseball teams in Canada
Defunct Pioneer League (baseball) teams
Sport in Medicine Hat
Toronto Blue Jays minor league affiliates