1977 Toronto Blue Jays season
| 1977 Toronto Blue Jays | |
|---|---|
| Inaugural season | |
| Major League affiliations | |
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| Location | |
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| Results | |
| Record | 54–107 (.335) |
| Divisional place | 7th |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) |
Labatt Breweries, Imperial Trust, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce |
| General manager(s) | Peter Bavasi |
| Manager(s) | Roy Hartsfield |
| Local television |
CBC Television (Don Chevrier, Tony Kubek, Tom McKee) |
| Local radio |
CKFH (Early Wynn, Tom Cheek) |
| Next season > | |
The 1977 Toronto Blue Jays season was the first year of Major League Baseball played by the Toronto-based expansion franchise. The Blue Jays finished seventh in the American League East with a record of 54 wins and 107 losses, 45½ games behind the World Champion New York Yankees.
The Blue Jays spring training was held in Dunedin, Florida. In their first pre-season game on March 11, the Jays beat the New York Mets by a score of 3–1. The first two times that they played the Montreal Expos, the Jays were triumphant as well. Perhaps the highlight of spring training was a match against the Cincinnati Reds. The Blue Jays defeated the defending World Series champions as the Reds were missing only one regular starter from their lineup. After spring training, the Blue Jays 25-man roster was set. Ron Fairly, who had previously played for the Montreal Expos, was one of the most recognizable players on the nascent team. The only marquee name was Bill Singer. Pat Gillick had a deal with the New York Yankees to trade Singer for a promising, young left-hander named Ron Guidry. Blue Jays president Peter Bavasi vetoed the deal as Singer was part of his plan to market and promote the team.
On April 7, 1977, 44,649 fans were in attendance to watch the first game in Toronto Blue Jays franchise history as the squad played the Chicago White Sox. Notables in attendance that day included Paul Godfrey, Toronto mayor David Crombie, legendary broadcaster Foster Hewitt, and country singer Anne Murray. Besides the snow that adorned the field, there were hundreds of fans who missed the first pitch due to many traffic jams that day.
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