2007 Toronto Blue Jays season
| 2007 Toronto Blue Jays | |
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| Major League affiliations | |
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| Results | |
| Record | 83–79 (.512) |
| Divisional place | 3rd |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | Rogers; Paul Godfrey (CEO) |
| General manager(s) | J. P. Ricciardi |
| Manager(s) | John Gibbons |
| Local television |
Rogers Sportsnet (Jamie Campbell, Pat Tabler, Rance Mulliniks, Darrin Fletcher, Sam Cosentino (field reporter)) (116 games) TSN (Rod Black, Pat Tabler) (20 games) CBC (Jim Hughson, Rance Mulliniks, Jesse Barfield) (8 games) |
| Local radio | 590 AM |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The 2007 Toronto Blue Jays season was the franchise's thirty-first season of Major League Baseball. The Blue Jays tried to improve on their 87-win 2006 season, hoping to make the playoffs for the first time since 1993.
In the offseason, the Jays signed All Star outfielder Vernon Wells to one of the richest contracts in MLB history, giving him a seven-year contract worth $126 million. Toronto also extended the contract of first baseman Lyle Overbay, and signed veteran designated hitter Frank Thomas. To offset the loss of starter Ted Lilly to the Chicago Cubs, Toronto signed Japanese pitcher Tomo Ohka and former Atlanta starter John Thomson to one-year contracts and inked former New York Mets hurler Víctor Zambrano to a minor-league deal. All three men, however, were eventually designated for assignment and released. The Jays also picked up infielder Jason Smith from the Rule 5 draft, but he too was released from his contract.
During the month of January, Toronto signed starting pitchers John Thomson and then Tomo Ohka to incentive-based one-year contracts in an effort to strengthen their 4th and 5th rotational slots. On January 30 Toronto also signed starting pitcher Víctor Zambrano to a minor league contract, and invited him to Spring training. All three were eventually released. When Brandon League, who was being considered for the main setup role, arrived to Spring training with a strained lat muscle, Zambrano took the empty spot in the bullpen. Thomson injured himself in spring training, so the Blue Jays named Ohka and Towers as their fourth and fifth starters. After four mediocre starts, Josh Towers was sent to the bullpen and replaced by Dustin McGowan. Towers returned to the rotation later in the year replacing released pitcher Tomo Ohka. When Gustavo Chacín was injured, he was replaced in the rotation by Shaun Marcum, who had a breakout year.
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