subject: The Toronto Blue Jays Tickets : The Blue Jays Name Originates From The Bird Of The Same Name [print this page] The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Blue Jays are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball (MLB)'s American League (AL).
The "Blue Jays" name originates from the bird of the same name. They are nicknamed "the Jays", which is featured on the team's logo and on the front of the home uniform.
An expansion franchise, the club was founded in Toronto, in 1977. Originally based at Exhibition Stadium, the team began playing its home games at the SkyDome, upon completion of its construction in 1989.
Since 2000, the Blue Jays are owned by Rogers Communications, and in 2004, the SkyDome was purchased by the company, which renamed the venue to Rogers Centre. They are the only team outside the United States to win a World Series, the first team to win a World Series in Canada, the first team from Canada to appear in the World Series, and the fastest American League expansion franchise to win a World Series (winning in their 16th year, beating the Kansas City Royals' record by one year).
With the fellow Canadian franchise Montreal Expos relocating to Washington, D.C. after the 2004 season, and becoming the Washington Nationals, the Blue Jays are currently the only MLB team outside the United States. The Blue Jays are also one of three MLB teams under corporate ownership, with the other two being the Seattle Mariners (Nintendo of America) and the Atlanta Braves (Liberty Media).
The 2009 season saw the addition of two new patches on the Blue Jays' uniforms: on the right arm, a bright red maple leaf (part of the Canadian flag), and on the left arm, a small black band with "TED" written on it, in reference to team owner Ted Rogers, who died in the off-season.
The Toronto Blue Jays took on the Detroit Tigers, for Opening Day, at the Rogers Centre on April 6, 2009, beating the Detroit Tigers 12/5. Roy Halladay was matched up against the Tigers' pitcher, Justin Verlander, and Halladay went seven innings striking out two and walking one, but he did give up two home runs, and five runs overall.The game was briefly interrupted when fans started throwing objects onto the field (including baseballs, a golfball and an AA battery). The Tigers were pulled from the field in the bottom of the eighth inning, causing a nine-minute delay.
A statement was also read over the public address system reminding fans of the consequences of such actions (including the possibility of forfeiture of the game).
In another turn of events, the Rogers Centre was dry on April 7, as the province of Ontario imposed the first of a three-day alcohol suspension at the stadium, for "infractions (that) took place at certain past events," according to the press release.
The Jays beat the Tigers 5/4 for their second win of the season.
2009 is the first year that the Blue Jays began counting their in game attendance by the ticket and not by numbers sold or given away. This was done to ensure that the number of fans paying for the seats they sit in is counted accurately.
On June 9, in the MLB draft with the 20th pick, the Jays selected RHP Chad Jenkins, a power pitcher that has drawn comparisons to David "Boomer" Wells and Gustavo Chacin .In addition, it was announced on the same day that Jesse Litsch will miss the remainder of the season with Tommy John surgery.Aaron Hill, and Roy Halladay both had excellent years and represented the Blue Jays at the 2009 All-Star game in St. Louis.
In mid-August, J. P. Ricciardi allowed the Chicago White Sox to claim Alex Rios off the waivers.With two games remaining in what was a disappointing season, Ricciardi was fired on October 3, 2009. He was replaced by assistant general manager Alex Anthopoulos.
Despite the team's overall disappointing record the Jays saw the strong return of Aaron Hill, who won the American League Comeback Player of the Year and the American League Silver Slugger for second base. Adam Lind, who also had a strong season, earned the Silver Slugger for designated hitter.
Team record 2009: 75 wins 87 losses, W%- 0.463, 28 games behind division leader, fourth in division.
