The Myrtle Beach Blue Jays were a minor league baseball team based in

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as "The Grand Strand" in the northeastern part of the state. Its y ...

. They began play in the

South Atlantic League The South Atlantic League, often informally called the Sally League, is a Minor League Baseball league with teams predominantly in states along the Atlantic coast of the United States from New York to Georgia. A Class A league for most of its ...

in 1987 after being relocated from

Florence, South Carolina Florence is a city in and the county seat of Florence County, South Carolina, United States. It lies at the intersection of Interstates 20 and 95 and is the eastern terminus of the former. It is the primary city within the Florence metropolit ...

(

Florence Blue Jays The Florence Blue Jays Baseball Club was a minor league baseball team based in Florence, South Carolina. They began play in the South Atlantic League in 1981 where they eventually captured the league title in 1985. After the 1986 season the t ...

). They played at the 3500 seat Coastal Carolina College Stadium (and later as Charles Watson Stadium) and were a minor league club 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 ...

. During this time the Hurricanes would see players such as

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 ...

;

Steve Karsay Stefan Andrew Karsay (born March 24, 1972) is an American former professional baseball pitcher and coach. Karsay played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics (1993–94, 1997, 2006), Cleveland Indians (1998–2001), Atlanta Brav ...

; Derek Bell;

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 C ...

and

Chris Weinke Christopher Jon Weinke (born July 31, 1972) is an American football coach, former professional football player, and former professional baseball player. After spending six years in the Toronto Blue Jays minor league baseball system, he enrolle ...

would wear their uniform. The club was renamed the

Myrtle Beach Hurricanes Myrtle may refer to: Plants *Myrtaceae, the myrtle family **''Myrtus'', the myrtle genus * List of plants known as myrtle, including a list of trees and plants known as myrtle In geography Canada * Myrtle, Ontario, a community United States * ...

in 1991. The team was sold after the 1992 season and relocated to Maryland as the

Hagerstown Suns The Hagerstown Suns were a Minor League Baseball team based in Hagerstown, Maryland. They were a member of the South Atlantic League and, from 2007 through 2020, were the Class A affiliate of the Washington Nationals. They played their home g ...

(replacing an Eastern League franchise of the same name).

Season-by-season record

Notable alumni

* Derek Bell (1988) *

(1991) 2 x MLB All-Star * Junior Felix (1987) *

Barry Foote Barry Clifton Foote (born February 16, 1952), is an American former professional baseball player, scout, coach, and minor league manager. He played as a catcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos (–), Philadelphia Phillies (1 ...

(1987, MGR) * Alex Gonzalez (1991) *

Richie Hebner Richard Joseph Hebner (born November 26, 1947) is an Americans, American former professional baseball player and Coach (baseball), coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from through , most prominently as a member of the Pi ...

(1988, MGR) *

(1987) 3 x MLB All-Star; 1996 AL

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (NL). The award was first introduced in 1956 by Baseball Commissioner Ford Frick in honor of Hall ...

Garth Iorg Garth Ray Iorg ( ; born October 12, 1954) is an American former professional baseball player who played his entire career (1978, 1980–1987) for the Toronto Blue Jays of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has also worked as the first base coach for ...

(1991, MGR) *

(1991) *

Graeme Lloyd Graeme John Lloyd (born 9 April 1967) is an Australian-born former professional baseball pitcher, who appeared with the Milwaukee Brewers, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Montreal Expos, Florida Marlins, New York Mets, and Kansas City Roy ...

(1988-1990) *

Luis Sojo Luis Beltrán Sojo Sojo ( ; ; born January 3, 1965) is a Venezuelan former professional baseball infielder. Listed during his playing days at and , he batted and threw right-handed. During his Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Sojo filled a ...

(1987-1988) *

Chris Stynes Christopher Desmond Stynes (born January 19, 1973) is a former Major League Baseball utility player.Pete Palmer; Gary Gillette; Stuart Shea. The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia'. Sterling Publishing Company; 1 February 2006. . p. 680. Early life Chri ...

(1992) *

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 ...

(1988) * David Weathers (1989) *

(1992)

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

Award winner, 2000 *

Mark Whiten Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fin ...

(1987)

Seasons synopsis

1987 Season

The team had a great first season in the South Atlantic League, winning the South Division in both the first half (42-28) and second half (41-28) under manager Barry Foote. The team led the league in ERA (3.13) and was third in runs (660) but the Asheville Tourists had an even better record (91-48) and scoring differential, leaving the Blue Jays as underdogs for the league championship. Myrtle Beach won game one 3-2 at home, then lost 9-2 before going on the road for the last three games. They lost 7-6 but then won 6-5 to stay alive with 4 runs in the ninth. The finale was a 3-2 win for the Jays, who had won a title in their first season in their new home. Mark Whiten was voted the top prospect in the league by league managers. Junior Felix was selected as the number three prospect. Catcher Francisco Cabrera was selected as the ninth-best prospect. Shortstop Eric Yelding stole 73 bases. Utility infielder Luis Sojo and backup catcher Randy Knorr would go on to long big-league careers. All Star Doug Linton led the league in earned run average and was selected as the sixth best prospect in addition to being the Most Outstanding Pitcher. The pitching staff also included Pat Hentgen and Cesar Mejia among the earned run leaders in the league.

1988 Season

The 1988 edition of the team also won the first half (46-24) but slipped in the second half (37-32) and then fell in the playoffs. The team had five of the league's 12 All-Stars, in addition to manager Richie Hebner. Derek Bell was voted the top prospect in the league. Jimmy Rogers was selected as Most Outstanding Pitcher and was named the fifth best prospect. First baseman Greg Vella (fourth best) and pitcher Xavier Hernandez (tenth best) were also top prospects. Rob MacDonald and Steve Wapnick were an excellent lefty-righty combination out of the bullpen.

1989 Season

In 1989 Myrtle Beach fell drastically, going 59-83 for the worst record in the South Atlantic League (12th overall). Mike Fischlin was the new manager. The club's 4.07 ERA was second-worst in the league. Dave Weathers (11-13, 3.86) was the workhorse of the staff that year.

1990 Season

Fischlin's club did better in 1990, posting a 77-63 record, fourth in the league despite no All-Stars. The team earned run average improved to third place (3.12), with Rob Blumberg (2.16) fourth in the league, Mike Ogliaruso (2.52) fifth (and named the number 8 prospect) and Aaron Small (2.80) eighth. Outfielder

Nigel Wilson Nigel Edward Wilson (born January 12, 1970) is a Canadian former Major League Baseball player from Oshawa, Ontario. He played for the Florida Marlins, Cincinnati Reds, and Cleveland Indians. He also spent six highly successful seasons in Nippo ...

was perhaps the club's most potent offensive force.

1991 Season

In 1991 the Myrtle Beach Blue Jays changed their name to the Myrtle Beach Hurricanes, remaining a Toronto Blue Jays affiliate. In their first year as the Hurricanes they went 60-79, 12th in the 14-team South Atlantic League under manager Garth Iorg. The team had the number three prospect in the league according to a poll of managers, catcher Carlos Delgado. Future NBA player Scott Burrell was 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA in 5 starts, striking out 31 in 27 innings and allowing just 18 hits. Ricardo Jordan also had a good year on the mound for the team.

1992

The team began 5-22 but finished the first half 27-15 and had the best second-half record (39-28). They then won all five postseason matches to capture the league title. Outfielder Rick Holifield hit .199 in the regular season but .444 in the postseason. The team had a couple of top prospects playing the field - first baseman Chris Weinke and shortstop Alex Gonzalez (number nine prospect in the league as per managers). Additionally third baseman Chris Stynes and utility infielder Joe Lis Jr. were key offensive contributors. Pitcher Paul Spoljaric was voted the number three prospect in the circuit. Giovanni Carrara (11-7, 3.14) was a good third starter behind All-Star Spoljaric and league earned run leader Travis Baptist. Gregg Martin and Al Montoya were a fine closing duo.

Move to Hagerstown

The club was owned by Baltimore oxygen salesman Winston Blenckstone, who had purchased the

for $200,000 in October, 1986 moving the club to Myrtle Beach. The Blue Jays home debut on April 8, 1987 against the Savannah Cardinals drew a standing room-only crowd of 4,030, but attendance quickly settled in at less than a thousand a night. Myrtle Beach’s attendance was among the worst in the South Atlantic League, just as it had been in Florence previously. By April 1989, Blenckstone was frustrated and threatened to move his ball club if city leaders wouldn’t commit to a new two million dollar stadium. He re-branded the team as the Myrtle Beach Hurricanes in 1991, but that did nothing to change the club’s box office fortunes. In late 1992, with stadium negotiations going nowhere, Blenckstone moved the franchise to

Hagerstown, Maryland Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland, United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2020 census was 43,527, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (exten ...

, where they remain today as the

South Atlantic League All-Stars

*Second Base: William Suero (1988) *Shortstop: Luis Sojo (1988) *Utility Infielder: Howard Battle (1991) *Outfield: Junior Felix (1987), Mark Whiten (1987), Derek Bell (1988) *Pitcher: Doug Linton (1987), Jimmy Rogers (1988), Denis Boucher (1988), Paul Spoljaric (1992), Chris Kotes (1992) *Manager: Richie Hebner (1988)

South Atlantic League Season Leaders

Pitching

*Earned Run Average: 1.55, Doug Linton (1987); 1.44, Travis Baptist (1992) *Wins: 18, Jimmy Rogers (1988) *Strikeouts: 198, Jimmy Rogers (1988) *Winning Percentage: .818 (18-4), Jimmy Rogers (1988) *Runs allowed: 103, Tim Brown (1989)

Hitting

*Batting Average: .344, Derek Bell (1988) *Hits: 155, Luis Sojo (1988) *Runs: 94, Mark Young (1989)

References

*''Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball: The Official Record of Minor League Baseball'' – Lloyd Johnson, Miles Wolff. Publisher: Baseball America, 2007. Format: Hardback, 767 pp. {{ISBN, 978-1-932391-17-6 Defunct South Atlantic League teams Toronto Blue Jays minor league affiliates Professional baseball teams in South Carolina Defunct baseball teams in South Carolina Baseball teams disestablished in 1992 Baseball teams established in 1987