Fans earn MVP in lost season
Martin among Blue Jays inspired by 3.2 million-plus with playoffs never in play
The Blue Jays have never and will never reach .500 this season, but the crowds at the Rogers Centre spun their own narrative.
The Jays welcomed 3,203,886 fans through the turnstiles over the course of the 2017 season — only 188,213 fewer than last year, despite far less to celebrate, and more than in 2015, when the Blue Jays clinched a playoff berth for the first time in more than two decades.
Attendance numbers tend to be finicky — tickets sold versus butts in seats — but to the players, there was never a moment when the support wavered.
That includes on the road, where Blue Jays followers remain one of the most dedicated travelling contingents across the league.
At home, the Jays did reward the faithful with more wins than losses for the fourth straight year, finishing at 42-39 after knocking off the New York Yankees 9-5 in Sunday’s Rogers Centre finale.
“The fans are the MVP this year,” catcher Russell Martin said as he cleaned out his locker on Sunday afternoon.
The Jays finish the regular season with series in Boston, starting Monday, and New York.
Usually in an off year like this, support will dip. Players know that. In this city, though, that wasn’t the case at all. The continued support to the end “shows a lot,” said the 34-yearold Martin.
“It didn’t really feel like we were out of contention at all this year because of it.”
For workhorse reliever Danny Barnes, in his first full season with the Blue Jays, that commitment from fans awed him throughout the year. He said that undying love will motivate players through the offseason to deliver a better performance next time around.
The playoffs will be hard to watch after entering the season with expectations of making it themselves. They were never really in the race as the season draws to a close.
“I think we’ll learn from the frustrations this season,” Barnes said.
On a day when the 17th sellout crowd of the year showered one of its most beloved, Jose Bautista, with an emotional goodbye throughout what was likely his last home game as a Jay, Barnes said he expects to see some new faces in the clubhouse next spring.
That and the likelihood of a healthier season overall — Blue Jays have spent a total of 1,372 man games on the disabled list this season — plus returning stars to help up-and-coming players reach the next level, are reasons for optimism, the reliever added. All-star Justin Smoak, the Blue Jays’ biggest success story of the year with 38 home runs and a .275 average to date, agreed.
“We still have a good team,” Smoak said. “We have a good crew of players coming back that people should be excited about, and they should come back out next year.”
Reflecting on the year as a whole, manager John Gibbons said he’s as disappointed as the players and fans are about missing the playoffs. But he, too, sees the potential for a major turnaround next season, and hopes just as many fans are along for the ride.
“You live and learn, and you finish this off hopefully strong over the next week,” Gibbons said. “Then you go home, regroup and rest up and take care of the family. It’s a cycle, a vicious cycle.”