Countdown to Spring Training - 48 Days
First we look at the career of a dominant part of the Blue Jays bullpen in the late 90's and early 2000's, Ontario's own, #48 Paul Quantrill. Quantrill came to the Blue Jays in 1996 after he began his career in Boston and Philadelphia. He survived a shaky first season in Toronto in which he made 20 starts, and 18 relief appearances.
In 1997 he moved to the bullpen full time, and began a run of seven seasons in which he was one of the most reliable late-inning men in all of baseball. His finest season in Toronto came in 2001, when he made 80 appearances, won 11 games, and went to the All-Star game for the only time in his 16-year career. Over six seasons with the Blue Jays, Quantrill racked up 30 victories, 15 saves, and appeared in 386 games, 6th most in franchise history.
From 1999-2001 Quantrill served as the primary set-up man for Toronto's young, hard-throwing closer Billy Koch, who began his career in 1999. In his rookie season, Koch set a Blue Jays record for games finished as a rookie with 48.
Koch's career got off to a very promising start, as 31 of those 48 games finished in 1998 resulted in saves, also a rookie record. Koch saved 33 games in 2000, and then 36 games in 2001 to finish his tenure in Toronto.
Koch was traded to the Oakland A's following the 2001 season, and the man they got in return, Eric Hinske, went on to win the Rookie of the Year award in 2002. He became just the second Blue Jay to ever win that award. Hinske finished the 2002 season with 24 home runs, 38 doubles, and a slugging percentage of .481, the highest of any Blue Jay rookie in franchise history.
The Countdown continues tomorrow with a look at an all time great, #47 Lloyd Moseby.
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