Myrtle Beach Blue Jays
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Myrtle Beach Blue Jays 1987–1992 Myrtle Beach, SC |
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| Class-level | |
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| Previous | Class A |
| Minor league affiliations | |
| League | South Atlantic League |
| Major league affiliations | |
| Previous | Toronto Blue Jays (1987-1992) |
| Minor league titles | |
| League titles | 1987, 1992 |
| Division titles | 1987, 1992 |
| Team data | |
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Previous names
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Previous parks
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Coastal Carolina College Stadium (1987-1992) |
The Myrtle Beach Blue Jays were a minor league baseball team based in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. They began play in the South Atlantic League in 1987 after being relocated from Florence, South Carolina (Florence Blue Jays). They played at the 3500 seat Coastal Carolina College Stadium (and later as Charles Watson Stadium) and were a minor league club of the Toronto Blue Jays. During this time the Hurricanes would see players such as Carlos Delgado; Steve Karsay; Derek Bell; Pat Hentgen and Chris Weinke would wear their uniform. The club was renamed the Myrtle Beach Hurricanes in 1991. The team was sold after the 1992 season and relocated to Maryland as the Hagerstown Suns (replacing an Eastern League franchise of the same name).
The team had a great first season in the South Atlantic League, winning the South Division in both the first half (42-28) and second half (41-28) under manager Barry Foote. The team led the league in ERA (3.13) and was third in runs (660) but the Asheville Tourists had an even better record (91-48) and scoring differential, leaving the Blue Jays as underdogs for the league championship. Myrtle Beach won game one 3-2 at home, then lost 9-2 before going on the road for the last three games. They lost 7-6 but then won 6-5 to stay alive with 4 runs in the ninth. The finale was a 3-2 win for the Jays, who had won a title in their first season in their new home. Mark Whiten was voted the top prospect in the league by league managers. Junior Felix was selected as the number three prospect. Catcher Francisco Cabrera was selected as the ninth-best prospect. Shortstop Eric Yelding stole 73 bases. Utility infielder Luis Sojo and backup catcher Randy Knorr would go on to long big-league careers. All Star Doug Linton led the league in earned run average and was selected as the sixth best prospect in addition to being the Most Outstanding Pitcher. The pitching staff also included Pat Hentgen and Cesar Mejia among the earned run leaders in the league.
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