8 Baseball Players who Played for Yankees and Blue Jays
There is a good chance that if you’ve found this page then you’re playing the Immaculate Grid.
That also means that today’s grid has asked for players that have played for both the Toronto Blue Jays and the New York Yankees.
And, it also means that you’re probably stuck on this particular box and you’re looking for a little help. Sound about right so far?
Well, good news, you’re in the right place.
I’ve done some research and have found 8 players who played for both the Blue Jays and the Yankees. Here is a mix of well-known All-Stars along with some hidden gems that you may have forgotten about.
Roger Clemens
Roger Clemens is one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball history. His career, spanning 24 seasons from 1984 to 2007, was filled with success, including stints with the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, and Houston Astros.
Clemens racked up an impressive 354 wins with a 3.12 ERA, and his 4672 strikeouts place him third on the all-time list. Clemens was a workhorse, logging a career total of 4916.2 innings. Clemens was an 11-time All-Star and won the Cy Young Award seven times, more than any other pitcher in history.
His accolades also include two World Series titles, both with the Yankees, in 1999 and 2000. However, Clemens’ career has been overshadowed by allegations of performance-enhancing drug use, which has thus far kept him out of the Baseball Hall of Fame despite his remarkable statistics and accomplishments.
Clemens Key Stats
- MVP (Red Sox)
- Cy Young (Red Sox, Blue Jays, Yankees, Astros)
- All-Star (Red Sox, Blue Jays, Yankees, Astros)
- 3000+ Career Strikeouts
- 300+ Career Wins
- 20+ Win Season (Red Sox, Blue Jays, Yankees)
Rickey Henderson
Rickey Henderson was one of my favorite baseball players growing up. In fact, somewhere in a closet, I have a baseball card binder with over 150 Rickey Henderson baseball cards.
Most of us probably remember Henderson as an Oakland A, back in the late 80s playing on the same A’s teams as the Bash Brothers.
But, he played for an incredible 25 years in the majors and played on 9 different teams during that span.
Rickey played 14 years with the A’s, but he also played for the New York Yankees, San Diego Padres, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, LA Dodgers, Anaheim Angels, Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays.
So, not only is he an acceptable answer for a player who played for both the Blue Jays and the Yankees, but Rickey Henderson is a very versatile Immaculate Grid answer that you can use quite often.
In fact, he also had over 1400 career stolen bases, over 2200 runs and over 3000 hits (all of which could appear as possible categories).
John Olerud
Personally, I’ll always remember John Olerud in a Blue Jays uniform wearing his helmet out at first base. However, Olerud played with four other teams including some quality seasons with the Mets and Mariners.
A skilled first baseman and accomplished hitter, Olerud maintained a .295 career batting average, amassing over 2,200 hits, 1,200 RBIs and 500 doubles.
In 1993, he won the American League batting title with a .363 average. Olerud was a two-time All-Star and won three Gold Glove Awards for his defensive prowess. Finally, he was a key member of the Blue Jays’ back-to-back World Series championships in 1992 and 1993.
Josh Donaldson
Josh Donaldson is in his 13th season in the majors and is currently playing third base for the Yankees. Prior to landing with the Yankees, Donaldson played for the Blue Jays, A’s, Twins, Guardians and Braves.
Donaldson is a 3x All-Star (A’s, Blue Jays) and a 2x Silver Slugger award winner (Blue Jays). In 2015, Donaldson led the league with 123 RBIs while hitting 41 home runs en route to winning the AL MVP with the Blue Jays.
Edwin Encarnacion
Edwin Encarnación, a Dominican player who debuted in 2005, is best recognized for his time as a designated hitter and first baseman with the Toronto Blue Jays and Cleveland Indians.
Over his impressive career, Encarnación amassed over 1800 hits, belted more than 400 home runs, and maintained a batting average close to .260. He was a three-time All-Star (Blue Jays) and the AL RBI leader, once driving in 127 runs in a season.
His most productive season came in 2012 with the Blue Jays when he hit .280 with 42 home runs and 110 RBIs.
Dave Winfield
When you have an amazing 22-year career, you usually find your way onto multiple teams over the course of that time.
Dave Winfield played for 6 different teams over the course of his Hall of Fame career – the Yankees, Padres, Twins, Angels (California Angels at the time), Indians (now Guardians) and Blue Jays.
Winfield led the league in RBIs with 118 in 1979 with the Padres (finished 3rd in MVP voting that year). He finished with over 1800 RBIs over his career.
David Wells
David Wells, nicknamed “Boomer”, was a major force on the baseball mound from 1987 to 2007, spending time with the Blue Jays, Yankees, Padres, and several other teams including Tigers, Red Sox, Dodgers, Reds, Orioles and White Sox.
A key player in the Yankees’ ’98 World Series win, Wells also pitched a rare perfect game that same year.
His career stats are impressive, with a total of 239 wins and over 2,200 strikeouts over the course of 21 seasons.
Otis Nixon
Otis Nixon was a speedy outfielder whose career went from 1983 to 1999. Over those 17 seasons, Nixon played for 9 different teams – Braves, Indians (now Guardians), Montreal Expos, Blue Jays, Twins, Red Sox, Rangers, Dodgers and Yankees.
Nixon wasn’t a big hitter, but he was a whiz on the basepaths, stealing over 620 bases during his career and maintaining a respectable .270 batting average. He’s best remembered for his daring steals and spectacular catches, including an unforgettable game-saving grab in 1992 while with the Braves (video above).
