Toronto Blue Jays: The franchise all-time bracket
By Bill Felber
Toronto Blue Jays: The All-Time Bracket
No. 4 vs. 5 seed
The 2015 Jays are probably the better of the two modern Toronto teams to reach post-season. Notably, that team won four more regular-season games. It also went farther, although only slightly, in post-season, losing the ALCS to Kansas City in six games. The 2016 team went out in five.
Josh Donaldson hit 41 home runs and drove in 123 runs on a .297 batting average for that club. Right fielder Jose Bautista added 40 homers and 114 RBIs, DH Edwin Encarnacion 39 and 111. As a team, Toronto led the AL in home runs with 232.
Mark Buehrle, in his third Toronto season, was 15-8. David Price, acquired in a deadline trade, went 9-1 in 11 starts.
The 1991 Blue Jays beat Boston and Detroit by seven games for the AL East title but lost the ALCS to Minnesota. Morris handed Toronto two of those defeats. Maybe that’s why they went out and got him over the winter.
Carter hit 33 home runs and drove in 108. Carter and Roberto Alomar had come over from San Diego in a trade the previous December in exchange for shortstop Tony Fernandez and first baseman Fred McGriff.
Alomar batted .295 and provided a solid mid-infield defense.
Todd Stottlemyre, Jimmy Key, and David Wells gave Toronto three reliable starters. They combined for a 46-30 record in 95 starts.
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Game 1: The 1991 Jays had a 91-71 .562 record. In 2015 Toronto played two games better, 93-69 .574.
Game 2: The 2015 team produced a .455 post-season record based on its five-game division victory over Texas and its six-game ALCS loss to Kansas City. The 1991 team lost the ALCS in five games. That gives 2015 a 2-0 series lead.
Game 3: In 1991 the Jays only managed a 96 OPS+. With its abundant power, the 2015 team got all the way to 115.
Game 3: The 2015 Blue Jays compiled a 108 staff ERA+. In 1991 the Jays relied on their pitching, and that staff returned a 121 ERA+.
Game 5: The 1991 Jays had a 45.1 WAR. But in 2015 Toronto produced a 48.3 WAR.
Result: 2015 in five games