2008 Toronto Blue Jays season

The 2008 Toronto Blue Jays season, the team's 32nd year of existence, saw the Blue Jays finish in fourth place in the American League East with a record of 86 wins and 76 losses for a .531 winning percentage, thus making this season the third consecutive winning season for the Jays, as well as being the highest win–loss record since their 2006 season.

2008 Toronto Blue Jays
LeagueAmerican League
DivisionEast
BallparkRogers Centre
CityToronto
Record86–76 (.531)
Divisional place4th
OwnersRogers; Paul Godfrey (CEO)
General managersJ. P. Ricciardi
ManagersJohn Gibbons, Cito Gaston
TelevisionRogers Sportsnet
(Jamie Campbell, Pat Tabler, Rance Mulliniks, Darrin Fletcher, Sam Cosentino (Field Reporter)) (100 Games) CBC
(Jim Hughson, Rance Mulliniks, Jesse Barfield) (24 Games) TSN
(Rod Black, Pat Tabler) (20 Games)
Radio590 AM
← 2007 Seasons 2009 →

Off-season

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General Manager J. P. Ricciardi maintained through the off-season that he was content with the Blue Jays' roster as it was. Nevertheless, he made a number of moves, two of which would likely have a significant effect on the team in the 2008 season. The team's acquisition of all-star shortstop David Eckstein was met with a mixed reception from fans and critics. Eckstein's role on the team would displace two of Toronto's most popular players from their regular roles; Reed Johnson as leadoff hitter and John McDonald as starting shortstop.

Eckstein was signed to fill the leadoff spot in the order which was void of a true leadoff man for much of 2007 due to the injury to Johnson. Johnson was released by the Blue Jays on March 23 and the LF position was given to Shannon Stewart who split time with Matt Stairs.[1]

The other major move by the club in the off-season was the trade of third baseman Troy Glaus to the Cardinals for David Eckstein's teammate, Scott Rolen. The move was generally seen to be a major risk to both parties, as both players were dealing with injuries over the past several seasons. The move was also noted as being somewhat redundant, given the various similarities between the two players. Both hit for power, though Glaus slightly more so, both were approximately the same age, and both were prone to injury. Rolen was, however, a significantly better defender than Glaus.

The Blue Jays played their 5000th franchise regular season game on Friday July 25 against the Seattle Mariners.

Other acquisitions

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The Blue Jays also signed catcher Rod Barajas (who split time with Gregg Zaun) and Marco Scutaro, who played third base for most of the games for the beginning of the season, until Scott Rolen returned from his injury in May.

Players signed to minor league deals:

On April 20, 2008, the Jays released veteran DH Frank Thomas. Although the Jays said it was due to a weak performance, Thomas stated it was probably because he only needed a little more than 300 at-bats to put his 2010 option year in effect. General Manager J. P. Ricciardi stated that this move was because the Blue Jays were falling behind early and Thomas was not producing. Ricciardi needed someone who could hit home runs and drive in RBIs from Thomas' spot in the batting order.

Expectations

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The Blue Jays were picked by many experts to contend for a playoff spot in the agonizing AL East. The Blue Jays were also expected to challenge the Yankees and Red Sox in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Though they finished 2006 in second place, 2007 was an injury riddled season for the Jays, resulting in another mediocre third-place finish. The key to the Blue Jays' success in 2008 would be to stay healthy and hit well. Another repeat of 2007 would mean likely another mediocre season. Key players such as Alex Ríos, Vernon Wells, Scott Rolen, David Eckstein, Roy Halladay, A. J. Burnett and B. J. Ryan needed to stay virtually healthy and produce as they are capable of, if the Jays wished to seriously challenge or dethrone the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians for a playoff spot. Ultimately, the Blue Jays did not meet the expectations of contending and finished with a less than impressive season record.

Regular season

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Season standings

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AL East
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Tampa Bay Rays 97 65 .599 57‍–‍24 40‍–‍41
Boston Red Sox 95 67 .586 2 56‍–‍25 39‍–‍42
New York Yankees 89 73 .549 8 48‍–‍33 41‍–‍40
Toronto Blue Jays 86 76 .531 11 47‍–‍34 39‍–‍42
Baltimore Orioles 68 93 .422 28½ 37‍–‍43 31‍–‍50


Record vs. Opponents

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Team BAL BOS CWS CLE DET KC LAA MIN NYY OAK SEA TB TEX TOR NL
Baltimore 6–12 4–5 4–4 4–3 5–3 3–6 3–3 7–11 0–5 8–2 3–15 4–5 6–12 11–7
Boston 12–6 4–3 5–1 5–2 6–1 1–8 4–3 9–9 6–4 6–3 8–10 9–1 9–9 11–7
Chicago 5–4 3–4 11–7 12–6 12–6 5–5 9–10 2–5 5–4 5–1 4–6 3–3 1–7 12–6
Cleveland 4–4 1–5 7–11 11–7 10–8 4–5 8–10 4–3 5–4 4–5 5–2 6–4 6–1 6–12
Detroit 3–4 2–5 6–12 7–11 7–11 3–6 7–11 4–2 3–6 7–3 3–4 6–3 3–5 13–5
Kansas City 3–5 1–6 6–12 8–10 11–7 2–3 6–12 5–5 6–3 7–2 3–5 2–7 2–5 13–5
Los Angeles 6–3 8–1 5–5 5–4 6–3 3–2 5–3 7–3 10–9 14–5 3–6 12–7 6–3 10–8
Minnesota 3–3 3–4 10–9 10–8 11–7 12–6 3–5 4–6 5–5 5–4 3–3 5–5 0–6 14–4
New York 11–7 9–9 5–2 3–4 2–4 5–5 3–7 6–4 5–1 7–2 11–7 3–4 9–9 10–8
Oakland 5–0 4–6 4–5 4–5 6–3 3–6 9–10 5–5 1–5 - 10–9 3–6 7–12 4–6 10–8
Seattle 2–8 3–6 1–5 5–4 3–7 2–7 5–14 4–5 2–7 9–10 3–4 8–11 5–4 9–9
Tampa Bay 15–3 10–8 6–4 2–5 4–3 5–3 6–3 3–3 7–11 6–3 4–3 6–3 11–7 12–6
Texas 5–4 1–9 3–3 4–6 3–6 7–2 7–12 5–5 4–3 12–7 11–8 3–6 4–4 10–8
Toronto 12–6 9–9 7–1 1–6 5–3 5–2 3–6 6–0 9–9 6–4 4–5 7–11 4–4 8–10

Detailed record

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updated to games played September 28, 2008

Team Home Away Total Gms Left
AL East
Baltimore Orioles 6–3 6–3 12–6
Boston Red Sox 5–4 4–5 9–9
New York Yankees 5–4 4–5 9–9
Tampa Bay Rays 5–4 2–7 7–11
21–15 16–20 37–35
AL Central
Chicago White Sox 4–0 3–1 7–1
Cleveland Indians 0–3 1–3 1–6
Detroit Tigers 2–2 3–1 5–3
Kansas City Royals 4–0 1–2 5–2
Minnesota Twins 3–0 3–0 6–0
13–5 11–7 24–12
AL West
Los Angeles Angels 1–2 2–4 3–6
Oakland Athletics 4–3 2–1 6–4
Seattle Mariners 3–3 1–2 4–5
Texas Rangers 0–2 4–2 4–4
8–10 9–9 17–19
National League
Atlanta Braves 2–1 2–1
Chicago Cubs 1–2 1–2
Cincinnati Reds 2–1 2–1
Milwaukee Brewers 0–3 0–3
Philadelphia Phillies 2–1 2–1
Pittsburgh Pirates 1–2 1–2
5–4 3–6 8–10
Month Games Won Lost
April 28 11 17
May 30 20 10
June 26 10 16
July 24 13 11
August 28 16 12
September 26 16 10
162 86 76
Manager Games Won Lost
John Gibbons 74 35 39
Cito Gaston 88 51 37
162 86 76

Season summary

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April

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The Blue Jays finished the first week of the season by taking 4 out of 6 games against AL East powerhouses New York and Boston, including a sweep of the Red Sox. Following the first two series, however, they faced a 4–4 Oakland Athletics team and promptly got swept at home, including two close one-run losses. Closer Jeremy Accardo blew a save in the second game and took the loss for the second straight night after the A's scored in the ninth inning in the first game against him. Following the sweep by Oakland, the Jays headed out on the road and swept the Texas Rangers at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, which had been considered a house of horrors of sorts as Toronto had lost 16 of its last 19 games there. Before the third game of the series, pitcher B. J. Ryan was activated from the disabled list and reinstated as the team's closer.[2] He went on to save the final game. The Jays completed their road trip by splitting a short two-game series with the Baltimore Orioles.

The Blue Jays returned home to face Texas for a pair of games and lost both contests, despite an incredible pitching performance by the Toronto relief corps in the first game and a complete game from ace Roy Halladay in the second. In the first game, despite the energy provided by escaping dangerous situations (the Rangers left the bases loaded three times in extra innings and failed to score), the Blue Jays' offense struggled and failed to respond. Manager John Gibbons used up all the relievers and had to send starter A. J. Burnett to face the Rangers in the 14th inning, where he went on to give up two runs and took the loss.

After splitting a four-game set with the surprisingly underachieving Detroit Tigers, Toronto left for a nine-game road trip, facing the Tampa Bay Rays, Kansas City Royals, and Boston Red Sox. The sojourn was completely forgettable, with the Jays being swept three straight by the Rays at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando and dropping two out of three to the Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Prior to the Royals series, the Blue Jays activated third baseman Scott Rolen from the disabled list, and he hit his first home run in a Jays uniform in the third game, which the Jays took behind Jesse Litsch to snap a six-game losing streak (dating back to the last game of the Detroit series). However, the Blue Jays then travelled to Boston and closed out April by losing the first two games against the Red Sox in heartbreaking fashion, with Halladay and Scott Downs respectively giving up walk-off hits to give the BoSox narrow one-run victories. For Halladay, it was his fourth complete game in a row, but a lack of hitting by the Toronto lineup doomed him to a loss. The Blue Jays lost 11 of their last 14 games in April, and manager Gibbons received a lot of criticism for his team's performance from fans due to the lack of manufacturing runs and a seeming lack of motivation; some suggested that it may be time for a managerial change.[3]

Toronto salvaged the rubber match of the Boston series on May 1, but not without some controversy. After Burnett and Jesse Carlson shut out the Red Sox for eight innings, B. J. Ryan was called in to close out the game. Coco Crisp popped out to right to seemingly end the tilt, but second base umpire Bruce Dreckman called Ryan for a balk and ordered the game to continue. Crisp followed with a single to right, moving Brandon Moss to third. However, Ryan vindicated himself with a strikeout of Jed Lowrie to end the game for good.

Building off the momentum, the Jays came back home and completed a four-game sweep of the Chicago White Sox (the first time they had swept a four-game set since 2003). The Toronto pitching kept Chicago at bay, shutting them out twice, while Vernon Wells and Matt Stairs in particular came through with clutch hits against ChiSox pitching. Despite hopes that the woeful offense would come around,[4] the Blue Jays then dropped two of three to the visiting Rays. In the first contest, starting shortstop David Eckstein left the game due to a hip injury, and his backup John McDonald followed him a short time later with a sprained ankle; both were eventually put on the 15-day disabled list. The last game with Tampa seemingly symbolized Toronto's struggles – after trailing for eight innings, they came back to tie in the bottom of the ninth, only to come up empty the next inning and waste a leadoff triple by Alex Ríos. In the 13th, Carl Crawford came through with a sacrifice fly off Shawn Camp, and a few batters later Dioner Navarro hit a grand slam, putting the game out of reach for the Jays.

Prior to a road series in Cleveland, general manager Ricciardi attempted to pick up the team's sagging offense and deepen the bench by signing free-agent outfielder Brad Wilkerson and acquiring outfielder Kevin Mench in exchange for cash considerations.[5] However, the Jays still lost three of four to the Indians, with Vernon Wells breaking his wrist trying to make a diving catch in the first game and missing the next 6–8 weeks.[6] Despite the blow dealt by the absence of Wells, the victory in the last game of the Cleveland series seemed to spur the Jays' bats back to life somewhat, as they proceeded to sweep the Twins in Minnesota and then take two of three from the Phillies in their first interleague series of the year. Returning home, Toronto lost the first two games of a close three-game set to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim but won the last game, using it as a springboard for a four-game sweep of the Royals that brought them three games above .500 for the first time in the season. The Jays then took off for the West Coast, splitting the first two tense games in Oakland before blowing out the A's 12–0 in the final game. The momentum continued in Anaheim when the Jays pounded the Angels 10–4 in the first game, but lost a 3–2 nail-biter in 10 innings in the second game. Despite the tight loss to the Angels, Toronto enjoyed a remarkable recovery from their disastrous April, winning 20 games, just one shy of the club record for the most wins in a single month.

June

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On Friday June 20, 2008, after losing 5 in a row and falling 10.5 games behind the Boston Red Sox, the Blue Jays replaced John Gibbons with Cito Gaston. Cito is the only manager to lead the Blue Jays to World Series victories in 1992 over the Braves and won again 1993 over the Phillies.

July

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On Tuesday July 8, 2008, the Blue Jays won their first game in walk-off fashion of the season, and marking the first time since September 17, 2007 that the Jays won a walk-off-style game. The win was a 7–6 victory over the visiting Baltimore Orioles, and the walk-off win was achieved by an RBI single from Scott Rolen, bringing Alex Ríos to score, after stealing two bases via a strikeout by Vernon Wells before Rolen's at-bat in the bottom of the 9th inning. Rios earlier in the bottom of the 7th inning, scored a three-run triple (his 3rd triple of the season), bringing the score to 6–5 Baltimore. Immediately afterwards, Vernon Wells hit an RBI single (his 2nd single of the night), bringing Rios home and tying the game 6–6 before the walk-off finisher two innings later.

Just 2 days later, on July 10, the Blue Jays won their second walk-off victory of the season, against the Baltimore Orioles. The win resulted in the Orioles being swept by the Jays, the first time since late May that the Jays won a sweep; against the Kansas City Royals. The Jays won 6–5. Marco Scutaro came as the first batter of the bottom of the 9th, as a pinch hitter for Matt Stairs; he struck out. Scutaro was followed by Rod Barajas who fired a single into right field and was subsequently replaced with pinch runner John McDonald, who ran to 2nd base. Then came Scott Rolen who fired the ball deep into right field, landing near the foul line and resulting in a double, sending Rolen to 2nd and McDonald to 3rd. Gregg Zaun was intentionally walked by Orioles' closer George Sherrill thus loading the bases. This was followed by a sacrifice fly from Lyle Overbay, scoring McDonald and tying the game at 5–5. Lastly, Adam Lind came up and launched a ground ball single off to right field, past the glove of Aubrey Huff and placed near right fielder Nick Markakis. Rolen runs from 2nd base and makes it to home plate, giving the Blue Jays the sweep.

August

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On August 28, the Blue Jays designated DH Matt Stairs for assignment shortly after their 3–2 loss against the Tampa Bay Rays. He was then traded to the Philadelphia Phillies, who went on to win the World Series.

After the Jays won their final game against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium 6–2 on August 31, shortstop David Eckstein was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for a right-handed pitcher.

September

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The Jays swept the Minnesota Twins from September 2–4, marking the second straight sweep of the Twins for the Jays this season and also the first time since several years ago that they swept one team three times in a row, since the Jays swept the Twins in July 2007 in addition to the two sweeps this year.

The Jays beat the Rays on September 5, 6–4 and then on September 6, they won their first series victory over the Rays this season, winning the game 7–4 due to a walk-off grand slam by catcher Gregg Zaun at the bottom of 13th inning. As a result, three records occurred: 1. That walk-off grand slam was the second in franchise history (the first was by George Bell on September 4, 1988) as well as being the franchise's first walk-off grand slam to occur in extra innings. 2. The win was the Jays seventh straight win, the first time this happened since September 2002. 3. With the win, the Jays were 5–0 so far for the month of September, marking the first time since September 1998 that the Jays had that record at the beginning of that month.

On September 7, the Jays won the final game against the Rays 1–0, thus sweeping them. David Purcey got the win, going 8 solid innings, and Jesse Carlson got the save, his 2nd of the season. With this win, the Jays now have their longest winning streak since April 1999. The sweep of the Rays was also the first time in franchise history that they swept the Rays. [citation needed]

The Jays opened a four-game series with the Chicago White Sox by winning a rain-postponed double-header on September 9. A.J.Burnett got his 17th victory of the season by taking a no-hitter into the 6th inning before giving up a run. Jays win 3–1. Jesse Litsch pitched a solid 7 innings and records his fifth win since being recalled from AAA. Marco Scutaro leads off the game with his 2nd career lead-off home run. Litsch again receives much run support and the Jays win 8–2.

On September 12, the Jays went into Fenway Park to face the AL Wild Card Leaders, The Boston Red Sox. The Jays promptly lost 3 out of 4 in that weekend series, ultimately dropping them out of the AL Wild Card contention.

On September 18, the Jays scored a 3–2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles, moving their record to 82–71. The victory secured a third consecutive winning season for the team, something which they have not accomplished since 19982000.

On September 25, versus the New York Yankees, Roy Halladay pitched a complete game six-hitter for his 20th win of the season, the first time he did so since his Cy Young Award-winning 2003 season. Halladay became only the 2nd Blue Jays pitcher to have pitched two 20+ win seasons, after Roger Clemens did so in 1997 and 1998. With that win, Halladay also became the first pitcher to have a 5–0 record against the Yankees in a season, since Luis Tiant accomplished the feat in 1974.

2008 Draft picks

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Source [7]

The 2008 MLB draft was held on June 5–6.

Round Pick Player Position College/School Nationality Signed
1 17 David Cooper 1B California   2008–06–10
2 63 Kenny Wilson OF Sickles High School (FL)   2008–06–10
3 95 Andrew Liebel RHP Long Beach State   2008–07–14
4 129 Mark Sobolewski 3B Miami (FL)   2008–07–03
5 159 Tyler Pastornicky SS The Pendleton School (FL)   2008–06–10
6 189 Markus Brisker OF Winter Haven High School (FL)   2008–06–10
7 219 Eric Thames OF Pepperdine   2008–06–10
8 249 Evan Crawford LHP Auburn   2008–06–10
9 279 A. J. Jimenez C Discipulos De Cristo (PR)   2008–06–10
10 309 Danny Farquhar RHP Louisiana–Lafayette   2008–06–30

Roster

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2008 Toronto Blue Jays
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Other batters

Manager

Coaches

Game log

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2008 Game Log
March: 0–0
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
March 31 @ Yankees Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for April 1
April: 11–17 (Home: 5–7; Away: 6–10)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
1 April 1 @ Yankees 3–2 Wang (1–0) Halladay (0–1) Rivera (1) 55,112 0–1 1
2 April 2 @ Yankees 5–2 Burnett (1–0) Mussina (0–1) Accardo (1) 48,544 1–1 1
3 April 3 @ Yankees 3–2 Chamberlain (1–0) Wolfe (0–1) Rivera (2) 47,785 1–2
4 April 4 Red Sox 6–3 Marcum (1–0) Aardsma (0–1) Accardo (2) 50,171 2–2 ½
5 April 5 Red Sox 10–2 Litsch (1–0) Buchholz (0–1) 35,238 3–2 ½
6 April 6 Red Sox 7–4 Halladay (1–1) Beckett (0–1) Accardo (3) 30,114 4–2 ½
7 April 8 Athletics 9–8 Embree (1–1) Accardo (0–1) Street (1) 31,336 4–3 2
8 April 9 Athletics 6–3 Hernández (1–0) Accardo (0–2) Street (2) 16,102 4–4
9 April 10 Athletics 3–2 (12) Devine (1–0) League (0–1) Foulke (1) 16,521 4–5 2
10 April 11 @ Rangers 8–5 Litsch (2–0) Padilla (1–1) Downs (1) 24,209 5–5 1
11 April 12 @ Rangers 4–1 Halladay (2–1) Mendoza (0–1) 34,960 6–5 1
12 April 13 @ Rangers 5–4 (10) Carlson (1–0) Nippert (0–1) Ryan (1) 21,515 7–5 0
13 April 14 @ Orioles 4–3 Albers (2–0) McGowan (0–1) Sherrill (6) 11,510 7–6 1
14 April 15 @ Orioles 11–3 Marcum (2–0) Trachsel (1–2) 15,017 8–6 ½
15 April 16 Rangers 7–5 (14) Nippert (1–1) Burnett (1–1) Wilson (4) 15,686 8–7 ½
16 April 17 Rangers 4–1 Padilla (2–1) Halladay (2–2) Wilson (5) 15,809 8–8
17 April 18 Tigers 8–4 Rogers (1–3) Accardo (0–3) 24,294 8–9
18 April 19 Tigers 3–2 McGowan (1–1) Bonderman (1–2) Ryan (2) 31,052 9–9
19 April 20 Tigers 5–3 Burnett (2–1) Robertson (0–2) Accardo (4) 30,139 10–9
20 April 21 Tigers 5–1 Galarraga (2–0) Marcum (2–1) 25,287 10–10
21 April 22 @ Rays 6–4 Shields (2–1) Litsch (2–1) Percival (2) 8,269 10–11
22 April 23 @ Rays 5–3 Hammel (2–1) Halladay (2–3) Percival (3) 8,989 10–12
23 April 24 @ Rays 5–3 Sonnanstine (3–1) McGowan (1–2) Percival (4) 9,540 10–13
24 April 25 @ Royals 8–4 Núñez (2–0) Burnett (2–2) 22,561 10–14
25 April 26 @ Royals 2–1 Hochevar (1–1) Marcum (2–2) Soria (6) 24,078 10–15
26 April 27 @ Royals 5–2 Litsch (3–1) Meche (1–4) Carlson (1) 13,998 11–15
27 April 29 @ Red Sox 1–0 Papelbon (1–0) Halladay (2–4) 37,215 11–16
28 April 30 @ Red Sox 2–1 Papelbon (2–0) Downs (0–1) 37,710 11–17
May: 20–10 (Home: 10–4; Away: 10–6)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
29 May 1 @ Red Sox 3–0 Burnett (3–2) Wakefield (2–1) Ryan (3) 37,821 12–17
30 May 2 White Sox 2–0 Marcum (3–2) Buehrle (1–3) Downs (2) 21,057 13–17
31 May 3 White Sox 5–2 Litsch (4–1) Danks (2–3) Ryan (4) 27,778 14–17
32 May 4 White Sox 4–3 Halladay (3–4) Contreras (2–3) Downs (3) 26,247 15–17
33 May 5 White Sox 1–0 McGowan (2–2) Vázquez (3–3) Ryan (5) 16,602 16–17
34 May 6 Rays 5–4 Sonnanstine (5–1) Burnett (3–3) Percival (7) 30,397 16–18
35 May 7 Rays 6–2 Marcum (4–2) Garza (1–1) 19,276 17–18
36 May 8 Rays 8–3 (13) Howell (1–0) Camp (0–1) 21,118 17–19
37 May 9 @ Indians 6–1 Sabathia (2–5) Halladay (3–5) 26,472 17–20
38 May 10 @ Indians 12–0 Laffey (1–2) McGowan (2–3) 38,141 17–21
May 11 @ Indians Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for May 12
39 May 12 @ Indians 3–0 Carmona (4–1) Burnett (3–4) 17–22 -
40 May 12 @ Indians 3–0 (10) Ryan (1–0) Betancourt (1–2) Downs (4) 16,045 18–22
41 May 13 @ Twins 5–3 Litsch (5–1) Slowey (0–3) Ryan (6) 18,110 19–22 5
42 May 14 @ Twins 6–5 Halladay (4–5) Bonser (2–5) Downs (5) 21,026 20–22 4
43 May 15 @ Twins 3–2 (11) Camp (1–1) Crain (1–2) Ryan (7) 18,701 21–22 4
44 May 16 @ Phillies 10–3 Moyer (3–3) Purcey (0–1) 36,600 21–23 5
45 May 17 @ Phillies 6–3 Burnett (4–4) Eaton (0–2) Ryan (8) 42,604 22–23 4
46 May 18 @ Phillies 6–5 Frasor (1–0) Seánez (2–3) Ryan (9) 42,858 23–23 4
47 May 20 Angels 3–1 Lackey (1–0) McGowan (2–4) Rodríguez (18) 31,487 23–24
48 May 21 Angels 4–3 Garland (5–3) Marcum (4–3) Rodríguez (19) 20,163 23–25
49 May 22 Angels 4–3 Burnett (5–4) Santana (6–2) Ryan (10) 22,007 24–25
50 May 23 Royals 7–1 Halladay (5–5) Greinke (5–2) 24,207 25–25
51 May 24 Royals 6–0 Litsch (6–1) Hochevar (3–4) 28,162 26–25
52 May 25 Royals 3–1 McGowan (3–4) Meche (3–7) Ryan (11) 29,315 27–25 4
53 May 26 Royals 7–2 Marcum (5–3) Tomko (2–6) 23,157 28–25 4
54 May 27 @ Athletics 3–1 Smith (3–4) Burnett (5–5) Street (12) 10,635 28–26 4
55 May 28 @ Athletics 2–1 Halladay (6–5) Foulke (0–1) Ryan (12) 17,460 29–26 4
56 May 29 @ Athletics 12–0 Litsch (7–1) Eveland (4–4) 21,862 30–26 3
57 May 30 @ Angels 10–4 McGowan (4–4) Weaver (4–6) 42,577 31–26 3
58 May 31 @ Angels 3–2 (10) Shields (3–1) Tallet (0–1) 43,645 31–27 4
June: 10–16 (Home: 7–8; Away: 3–8)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
59 June 1 @ Angels 4–3 Arredondo (2–0) Ryan (1–1) 40,026 31–28 5
60 June 3 @ Yankees 9–3 Halladay (7–5) Giese (0–1) 53,629 32–28 4
61 June 4 @ Yankees 5–1 Mussina (9–4) Litsch (7–2) 51,151 32–29
62 June 5 @ Yankees 9–8 Farnsworth (1–2) Ryan (1–2) 53,571 32–30
63 June 6 Orioles 6–5 Sarfate (3–1) Benítez (0–1) Sherrill (21) 23,649 32–31
64 June 7 Orioles 9–5 Guthrie (3–6) Burnett (5–6) 25,122 32–32
65 June 8 Orioles 5–4 Halladay (8–5) Albers (3–2) Ryan (13) 25,365 33–32
66 June 9 Mariners 3–2 (10) Dickey (1–1) Frasor (1–1) Putz (7) 20,073 33–33 7
67 June 10 Mariners 3–1 McGowan (5–4) Silva (3–7) 36,170 34–33 6
68 June 11 Mariners 2–1 Hernández (5–5) Ryan (1–3) Morrow (1) 35,702 34–34 7
69 June 13 Cubs 3–2 Burnett (6–6) Gallagher (3–3) Ryan (14) 27,803 35–34
70 June 14 Cubs 6–2 Marquis (5–3) Halladay (8–6) 34,048 35–35
71 June 15 Cubs 7–4 Lilly (7–5) Litsch (7–3) 40,738 35–36
72 June 17 @ Brewers 7–0 Parra (6–2) McGowan (5–5) 37,065 35–37 9
73 June 18 @ Brewers 5–4 Sheets (8–1) Marcum (5–4) 34,442 35–38 10
74 June 19 @ Brewers 8–7 Bush (3–7) Burnett (6–7) Torres (10) 35,173 35–39 10½
75 June 20 @ Pirates 1–0 (12) Yates (3–0) Carlson (1–1) 28,962 35–40 10½
76 June 21 @ Pirates 6–3 Maholm (5–5) Litsch (7–4) Capps (17) 27,014 35–41 10½
77 June 22 @ Pirates 8–5 McGowan (6–5) Beam (0–1) Ryan (15) 22,983 36–41 10½
78 June 24 Reds 14–1 Burnett (7–7) Arroyo (4–7) 28,153 37–41 10
79 June 25 Reds 6–5 Burton (4–1) Wolfe (0–2) Cordero (15) 25,437 37–42 11
80 June 26 Reds 7–1 Litsch (8–4) Vólquez (10–3) 25,129 38–42 10½
81 June 27 Braves 4–0 Jurrjens (8–3) McGowan (6–6) 24,282 38–43 11½
82 June 28 Braves 9–5 Parrish (1–0) Hudson (8–6) 28,518 39–43 10½
83 June 29 Braves 1–0 Burnett (8–7) Reyes (3–6) Ryan (16) 30,514 40–43 10
84 June 30 @ Mariners 2–0 Halladay (9–6) Dickey (2–4) 30,179 41–43 10
July: 13–11 (Home: 8–4; Away: 5–7)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
85 July 1 @ Mariners 7–6 Morrow (1–1) Downs (0–2) 24,586 41–44 11
86 July 2 @ Mariners 4–2 Washburn (4–7) McGowan (6–7) Morrow (5) 23,283 41–45 12
87 July 4 @ Angels 8–2 Weaver (8–8) Burnett (8–8) 44,021 41–46 13
88 July 5 @ Angels 7–5 Halladay (10–6) Lackey (6–2) 43,767 42–46 13
89 July 6 @ Angels 7–1 Garland (8–5) Litsch (8–5) 41,026 42–47 14
90 July 8 Orioles 7–6 Ryan (2–3) Johnson (2–3) 23,276 43–47 12½
91 July 9 Orioles 9–8 Burnett (9–8) Olson (6–4) Ryan (17) 22,365 44–47 11½
92 July 10 Orioles 6–5 Camp (2–1) Sherrill (2–4) 22,279 45–47 10½
93 July 11 Yankees 5–0 Halladay (11–6) Chamberlain (2–3) 43,078 46–47
94 July 12 Yankees 9–4 Rasner (5–7) Litsch (8–6) 44,363 46–48
95 July 13 Yankees 4–1 Burnett (10–8) Pettitte (10–7) Ryan (18) 43,854 47–48 9
96 July 18 @ Rays 2–1 Shields (8–6) Burnett (10–9) Balfour (4) 23,706 47–49
97 July 19 @ Rays 6–4 Garza (8–5) Halladay (11–7) Wheeler (4) 32,669 47–50 10½
98 July 20 @ Rays 9–4 Camp (3–1) Jackson (5–7) 21,037 48–50
99 July 21 @ Orioles 8–3 Liz (4–2) Litsch (8–7) 12,772 48–51 10½
100 July 22 @ Orioles 10–8 Carlson (2–1) Cabrera (0–1) Ryan (19) 15,184 49–51
101 July 23 @ Orioles 5–1 Burnett (11–9) Guthrie (6–8) 24,776 50–51
102 July 24 @ Orioles 7–1 Halladay (12–7) Cabrera (6–6) 23,329 51–51
103 July 25 Mariners 5–4 (10) Carlson (3–1) Lowe (1–4) 28,463 52–51
104 July 26 Mariners 8–3 Purcey (1–1) Dickey (2–6) 33,041 53–51
105 July 27 Mariners 5–1 Washburn (5–9) Marcum (5–5) 33,369 53–52
106 July 28 Rays 3–1 Burnett (12–9) Shields (9–7) Ryan (20) 23,476 54–52
107 July 29 Rays 3–0 Garza (9–6) Halladay (12–8) 26,791 54–53
108 July 30 Rays 3–2 Jackson (7–7) Richmond (0–1) Percival (23) 40,322 54–54
August: 16–12 (Home: 7–6; Away: 9–6)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
109 August 1 @ Rangers 9–8 Wilson (2–2) Ryan (2–4) 23,973 54–55 10½
110 August 2 @ Rangers 6–4 Burnett (13–9) Feldman (4–4) Ryan (21) 32,641 55–55 10½
111 August 3 @ Rangers 8–4 Mendoza (3–4) Purcey (1–2) 17,488 55–56 11½
112 August 4 Athletics 6–1 Halladay (13–8) Gallagher (4–5) 24,761 56–56 10½
113 August 5 Athletics 4–3 Carlson (4–1) Street (2–5) 23,580 57–56 10½
114 August 6 Athletics 5–1 Marcum (6–5) Gonzalez (0–1) 29,256 58–56 10½
115 August 7 Athletics 6–4 Burnett (14–9) Blevins (1–2) Ryan (22) 28,821 59–56
116 August 8 Indians 5–2 Reyes (3–1) Purcey (1–3) Lewis (1) 31,627 59–57 10½
117 August 9 Indians 4–2 Byrd (6–10) Halladay (13–9) 39,623 59–58 11½
118 August 10 Indians 4–0 Lee (16–2) Richmond (0–2) 36,447 59–59 12½
119 August 11 @ Tigers 7–2 Marcum (7–5) Verlander (8–13) 39,718 60–59 12
120 August 12 @ Tigers 6–4 Burnett (15–9) Zumaya (0–2) Ryan (23) 39,790 61–59 11
121 August 13 @ Tigers 4–3 Purcey (2–3) Rogers (8–10) League (1) 39,073 62–59 11
122 August 14 @ Tigers 5–1 Galarraga (11–4) Frasor (1–2) 41,259 62–60 12
August 15 @ Red Sox Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 13
123 August 16 @ Red Sox 4–1 Halladay (14–9) Byrd (7–11) 37,834 63–60 11½
124 August 17 @ Red Sox 15–4 Marcum (8–5) Beckett (11–9) 37,415 64–60 11½
125 August 19 Yankees 2–1 Burnett (16–9) Veras (3–2) Ryan (24) 37,221 65–60 12
126 August 20 Yankees 5–1 Pettitte (13–9) Purcey (2–4) 34,910 65–61 12
127 August 21 Yankees 14–3 Halladay (15–9) Ponson (7–4) 37,037 66–61 11½
128 August 22 Red Sox 8–4 Byrd (8–11) Marcum (8–6) 40,181 66–62 12½
129 August 23 Red Sox 11–0 Litsch (9–7) Lester (12–9) 44,896 67–62 12½
130 August 24 Red Sox 6–5 Papelbon (5–3) League (0–2) Delcarmen (1) 44,521 67–63 12½
131 August 26 @ Rays 6–2 Halladay (16–9) Shields (11–7) 13,478 68–63 11½
132 August 27 @ Rays 1–0 Garza (11–9) Purcey (2–5) Wheeler (9) 12,678 68–64 12½
133 August 28 @ Rays 3–2 Jackson (11–8) Listch (9–8) Wheeler (10) 14,039 68–65 13½
134 August 29 @ Yankees 2–1 Pavano (2–0) Burnett (16–10) Rivera (32) 53,088 68–66 14½
135 August 30 @ Yankees 7–6 League (1–2) Marte (4–3) Ryan (25) 53,273 69–66 14½
136 August 31 @ Yankees 6–2 Halladay (17–9) Pettitte (13–11) 53,634 70–66 14½
September: 16–10 (Home: 10–5; Away: 6–5)
# Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Attendance Record GBL
137 September 2 Twins 7–5 Carlson (5–1) Bonser (3–7) Ryan (26) 21,254 71–66 13½
138 September 3 Twins 5–4 (11) Carlson (6–1) Guardado (3–4) 21,475 72–66 12½
139 September 4 Twins 9–0 Litsch (10–8) Slowey (11–9) 25,128 73–66 12½
140 September 5 Rays 6–4 Halladay (18–9) Sonnanstine (13–7) Ryan (27) 32,477 74–66 11½
141 September 6 Rays 7–4 (13) Tallet (1–1) Percival (2–1) 34,649 75–66 10½
142 September 7 Rays 1–0 Purcey (3–5) Garza (11–9) Carlson (2) 39,854 76–66
September 8 @ White Sox Postponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 9
143 September 9 @ White Sox 3–1 Burnett (17–10) Vázquez (11–13) Ryan (28) 24,621 77–66
144 September 9 @ White Sox 8–2 Litsch (11–8) Richard (2–4) 28,505 78–66
145 September 10 @ White Sox 6–5 Buehrle (13–11) Halladay (18–10) 26,198 78–67
146 September 11 @ White Sox 6–4 Marcum (9–6) Floyd (15–7) Ryan (29) 27,170 79–67 9
147 September 12 @ Red Sox 7–0 Wakefield (9–10) Purcey (3–6) 37,398 79–68
148 September 13 @ Red Sox 8–1 Burnett (18–10) Byrd (11–12) 37,341 80–68
149 September 13 @ Red Sox 7–5 Masterson (6–4) Downs (0–3) Papelbon (37) 37,846 80–69
150 September 14 @ Red Sox 4–3 Lester (15–5) Halladay (18–11) Papelbon (38) 37,007 80–70
151 September 16 Orioles 2–0 Waters (3–3) Marcum (9–7) 25,746 80–71 10
152 September 17 Orioles 8–7 Carlson (7–1) Mickolio (0–1) Ryan (30) 24,546 81–71 10
153 September 18 Orioles 3–2 Litsch (12–8) Olson (9–9) Ryan (31) 29,063 82–71 9
154 September 19 Red Sox 4–3 Delcarmen (1–2) Tallet (1–2) Papelbon (39) 34,982 82–72 10
155 September 20 Red Sox 6–3 Halladay (19–11) Lester (15–6) Ryan (32) 40,554 83–72 10
156 September 21 Red Sox 3–0 Matsuzaka (18–2) Richmond (0–3) Papelbon (40) 38,814 83–73 10
157 September 23 Yankees 3–1 Mussina (19–9) Litsch (12–9) Rivera (38) 27,216 83–74 12
158 September 24 Yankees 6–2 (10) Veras (5–2) Carlson (7–2) 28,701 83–75 13
159 September 25 Yankees 8–2 Halladay (20–11) Pavano (4–2) 44,346 84–75 12
160 September 26 @ Orioles 3–0 (7) Richmond (1–3) Waters (3–5) 17,716 85–75 11
161 September 27 @ Orioles 2–1 (6) Bass (4–4) Parrish (1–1) 18,378 85–76 11
162 September 28 @ Orioles 10–1 Litsch (13–9) Guthrie (10–12) 19,554 86–76 11

Player stats

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Batting

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Note: G = Games played; AB = At Bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases

Player G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI AVG SB
Lyle Overbay 158 544 74 147 32 2 15 69 .270 1
Alex Ríos 155 635 91 185 47 8 15 79 .291 32
Marco Scutaro 145 517 76 138 23 1 7 60 .267 7
Scott Rolen 115 408 58 107 30 3 11 50 .262 5
Joe Inglett 109 344 45 102 15 7 3 39 .297 9
Vernon Wells 108 427 63 128 22 1 20 78 .300 4
Matt Stairs 105 320 42 80 11 1 11 44 .250 1
Rod Barajas 104 349 44 87 23 0 11 49 .249 0
Adam Lind 88 326 48 92 16 4 9 40 .282 2
Gregg Zaun 86 245 29 58 12 0 6 30 .237 2
Brad Wilkerson 85 208 20 45 8 2 4 23 .216 2
John McDonald 84 186 21 39 8 0 1 18 .210 3
David Eckstein 76 260 27 72 18 0 1 23 .277 2
Aaron Hill 55 205 19 54 14 0 2 20 .263 4
Shannon Stewart 52 175 14 42 4 2 1 14 .240 3
Kevin Mench 51 115 18 28 11 1 0 10 .243 2
Travis Snider 24 73 9 22 6 0 2 13 .301 0
José Bautista 21 56 7 12 2 0 3 10 .214 0
Frank Thomas 16 60 7 10 1 0 3 11 .167 0
Curtis Thigpen 10 17 2 3 0 0 1 1 .176 0
Buck Coats 8 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 .200 1
Jason Frasor 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
B. J. Ryan 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Jesse Carlson 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Scott Downs 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Jorge Velandia 3 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Shawn Camp 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Brian Tallet 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Jesse Litsch 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Brian Wolfe 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Héctor Luna 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1.000 0
A. J. Burnett 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Shaun Marcum 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Roy Halladay 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Dustin McGowan 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Robinzon Diaz 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
David Purcey 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Armando Benitez 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 0
Team Totals 162 5503 714 1453 303 32 126 681 .264 80

Pitching

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Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts

Player W L ERA G GS SV IP R ER BB K
Roy Halladay 20 11 2.78 34 33 0 246.0 88 76 39 206
A. J. Burnett 18 10 4.07 35 34 0 221.1 109 100 86 231
Jesse Litsch 13 9 3.58 29 28 0 176.0 79 70 39 99
Shaun Marcum 9 7 3.39 25 25 0 151.1 60 57 50 123
Jesse Carlson 7 2 2.25 69 0 2 60.0 16 15 21 55
Dustin McGowan 6 7 4.37 19 19 0 111.1 60 54 38 85
Shawn Camp 3 1 4.12 40 0 0 39.1 18 18 11 31
David Purcey 3 6 5.54 12 12 0 65.0 41 40 29 58
B. J. Ryan 2 4 2.95 60 0 32 58.0 21 19 28 58
Scott Richmond 1 3 4.00 5 5 0 27.0 12 12 2 20
Jason Frasor 1 2 4.18 49 0 0 47.1 23 22 32 42
John Parrish 1 1 4.04 13 6 0 42.1 19 19 15 21
Brandon League 1 2 2.18 31 0 1 33.0 9 8 15 23
Brian Tallet 1 2 2.88 51 0 0 56.1 19 18 22 47
Scott Downs 0 3 1.78 66 0 5 70.2 15 14 27 57
Brian Wolfe 0 2 2.45 20 0 0 22.0 6 6 6 14
Armando Benitez 0 1 5.68 8 0 0 6.1 5 4 2 9
Jeremy Accardo 0 3 6.57 16 0 4 12.1 10 9 4 5
Randy Wells 0 0 0.00 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 1 0
Team Totals 86 76 3.49 162 162 44 1446.2 610 561 467 1184

Farm system

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Level Team League Manager
AAA Syracuse Chiefs International League Doug Davis
AA New Hampshire Fisher Cats Eastern League Gary Cathcart
A Dunedin Blue Jays Florida State League Omar Malavé
A Lansing Lugnuts Midwest League Clayton McCullough
A-Short Season Auburn Doubledays New York–Penn League Dennis Holmberg
Rookie GCL Blue Jays Gulf Coast League Dave Pano

References

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  1. ^ "MLB: Jays release Johnson, Stewart wins job – Posted Sports". Retrieved April 12, 2008.[dead link]
  2. ^ Inglett, Ryan lift Blue Jays over Rangers in 10 innings – MLB – Yahoo! Sports
  3. ^ Deveney, Sean (April 30, 2008). "Even grandma knows Jays' Gibbons on firing line". The Sporting News. Archived from the original on May 2, 2008. Retrieved May 3, 2008.
  4. ^ Bastian, Jordan (May 8, 2008). "Jays' offense may be out of recent funk". Toronto Blue Jays. Archived from the original on May 13, 2008. Retrieved May 9, 2008.
  5. ^ Bastian, Jordan (May 9, 2008). "Blue Jays pick up pair of outfielders". Toronto Blue Jays. Archived from the original on May 26, 2008. Retrieved June 1, 2008.
  6. ^ "Vernon Wells has broken wrist, out 6–8 weeks". CBC Sports. May 10, 2008. Retrieved June 1, 2008.
  7. ^ "Feature: 2008 Free Agent Draft Pick Compensation". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
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