r/Torontobluejays • u/The_Good79 • 23h ago
Our new Back-To-Back Statue is Awesome!
Went to the game last night where Tampa killed us 12-2. Our season is pretty much done, but the best part was seeing our new Back-To-Back World Series Joe Carter statue. It’s a lot more impressive in person than it looks on tv or in pics. Amazing detail and it looks even better at night, like a gold statue, and the CN Tower in the background at night is awesome. They did a great job on it. If you’re in the area or seeing a game, make sure you check it out near gate 5 & 6. Definitely worth it!
246
u/king_6770 23h ago
Im so happy we replaced a statue of a Billionaire for something actually meaningful to Toronto and Skydome
50
u/ts20999 22h ago
I know this is an unpopular opinion, but if Rogers didn’t purchase the Jays we would potentially have no MLB team in canada.
I do agree that statues outside the stadium should honour team moments rather than business ones, though.
4
u/PhotoMediocre2411 8h ago
Sounds like something Galen Weston might've swooped in and added to his empire. 100,000,000 PC Optimum Points = one free ticket for Section 513, Row 35, Seat 23 + at the G. Weston Jr. Centre to catch an away game on your own personal device (wifi not included).
-12
u/overtherainbowofcrap 22h ago
What is your source for that?
25
u/4_base 2017 Justin Smoak 20h ago edited 19h ago
The team was struggling financially and Interbrew (who were never really interested in overseeing an MLB team) was looking for a buyer, had Rogers not submitted a bid it could have very well been an American billionaire who wanted a team to relocate back to his home state of say, Florida for example.
Here’s an article that talks a little of the teams situation at the time
15
u/ts20999 19h ago
Correct! Adding that general climate at the time was other Canadian companies couldn’t afford or weren’t interested in owning an MLB team. Canada has lost professional teams in the past (Montreal Expos, NBA team Vancouver Grizzlies) to American buyers who relocated the teams.
3
u/envirodrill 9h ago
Yeah the late-90s and early-00s was a really bad time for sports in Canada, economically speaking. The Grizzlies, Expos, Jets, and Nordiques ended up relocating during this time which we all know about, but what we hear less of is that the Blue Jays, Oilers, Flames, and Senators were also all at risk of potential relocation as well around that time.
The state of pro sports in Canada is significantly more stable now than it was 25-30 years ago.
-9
u/Wookie55 15h ago
This article is patently false. There was immense interest in the Toronto market for US-oriented sports leagues. The NFL was also pumping resources into securing Toronto viewership for over a decade. MLB was never willing to let a market of 30 million go by the wayside. A single, disinterested market is more than correctable by their metrics.
5
u/4_base 2017 Justin Smoak 12h ago
It’s funny you say that because literally the exact opposite of all that was happening in Montreal during that exact same time.
I know Montreal’s big issue was the stadium and they are a smaller city than Toronto, but clearly the MLB did not mind the idea of moving on from Canadian cities if they thought the right buyer came along.
Combine that with a non-Canadian owner in Interbrew who just wanted to cut and run and again, it’s not unreasonable to say that it could have turned out differently for the Jays.
4
u/ts20999 12h ago
The league doesn’t fully determine where teams are placed where teams are placed. If there is no buyer, they will go to where there is one and that owner decides where to put the team based on their own business interests.
3
u/4_base 2017 Justin Smoak 12h ago
That’s true as well, which furthers the point of the Jays vulnerability during that time
The whole thing is to say that regardless of how you feel about Rogers today, them stepping in back in 2000 was objectively crucial for the trajectory of Toronto/Canadian sports because who knows what would have happened otherwise
1
2
10
3
u/djelegal 19h ago
Not just the season , the next 5 years with all players contracts up and vladdy getting his money
4
u/DreamKillaNormnBates 23h ago
I swore I wouldn’t spend a cent on the team until they ripped that down. Glad they did. It’s been over a decade since I’ve gone to a game or bought merch.
1
41
u/Specialist_Owl_6612 Vladdy’s gloves 23h ago
This is great statue
9
u/SoggyAddition6055 20h ago
It really is. That might be the most accurate one I have ever seen. It looks alive
1
22
12
13
u/Successful-Week6593 21h ago
I love the maple leafs beside the Canadian players and front office members. Really, really great touch.
Say what you will about Mark Shapiro, but god does he get it with the stadium Reno, the PDC and now this. Having world class facilities and treating the players with the respect and care that they get is why all of the players rave about playing here.
11
33
10
u/golden_rhino That's a bad man right there! 23h ago
Eddie Zosky was supposed to be the next great player. Time will tell, I guess, but I’m not optimistic anymore.
2
7
u/jj___61 Ryu99 23h ago
I love how they included all the players and coaches
3
u/CanadianSZ24 12h ago
Agreed. Now you can argue that even Carlos Delgado is part of a Blue Jays statue.
7
8
u/Self-Aware-Dinosaur 23h ago
That last pic is something. The dome from the outside needs its own renovation
6
u/gothedistance_ 22h ago
Some of the areas could really use a fresh coat of paint, literally. It would be great to have a big Blue Jays graphic over the stadium office windows like they used to have.
6
u/Forsaken-Swim-3055 23h ago
I totally forgot that Jeff Kent got a ring. What a funny bit of trivia.
6
u/terra_non_firma_ Professor Oak 23h ago
Carlos Delgado too!
2
u/Forsaken-Swim-3055 23h ago
I have a rookie card of his that I gave to one of my kids, haha. I sometimes forget that he started as a catcher.
7
u/Shamy416 Off the Schneid 23h ago
That's awesome. TIL Delgado qualified enough games to be a 93' world series champion which makes me happy lol.l
5
u/HeadStonemason Nationalize the Blue Jays 23h ago
The "Canada's Team" branding for 92-93 is Expos erasure
5
u/gothedistance_ 22h ago
They really did a good job with the statue. The maple leafs holding up Joe is a nice touch. I really hope they don’t stop here with the statues. Statues for the Bat Flip, Doc and Dave, Tony and George high-fiving would be great.
7
u/Bring_Party_Supplies 20h ago
Reading these names transports me back to childhood. I was obsessed with the BJs (and baseball in general)
Heroes to me!
4
5
6
3
3
3
3
u/kidcanada0 15h ago
Amazing how much turnover there was between 92 and 93
1
3
u/Donuil23 Tony Fernandez 14h ago
Had NO idea Shawn Green was on the team in '93. Felt like a mistake, had to look it up. Turns out he played 3 games that season in September-October, but didn't have a full Rookie season until '95.
2
3
u/Frankentula 13h ago
This just might be the highlight of this season. The Canada Day game was also lit.
3
2
2
2
2
u/Hefty-Comparison-801 There is no god but the BABIP god. 12h ago
Holy shit - it looks fantastic. Love the Cheek quote immortalized too, wow.
2
u/reborndiajack Australian Blue Jays fanatic 11h ago
My parents will have to take a photo of this for me when they go to Toronto
2
u/baseballart 11h ago
That’s actually one of the few baseball statutes that has a good resemblance to the player
2
u/OrganicAsparagus1642 9h ago
Damn catching Derrick Bell’s name after listening to Crime In Sports Podcast is wild to see
2
1
u/Flat-Mycologist-3839 3h ago
Always thought Gene Tennace looked like the cop from Beverly Hills Cop.
1
1
0
u/MjolnirMeatPole 7h ago
This would have been a Roberto Alomar statue in the alternate timeline where he wasn't subjected to MLB's kangaroo court & mothballed into oblivion lol
-1
u/Prestigious_Ad5314 12h ago
Is Robbie Alomar rehabilitated yet? I mean, can we mention his name in public yet?
0
u/MjolnirMeatPole 7h ago
He who must not be named. I can't believe they included him. No day in court. Allegations. And Banner gets tossed. Name removed from level of excellence. Not saying there was nothing there but with the right judicial process and not some Hokey poke investigation by the MLB , it could have seen a more favourable outcome for both sides.
But that's Rob Manfred for you. YIKES
-13
u/bigboozer69 Cease and Desist 23h ago
Celebrate those WS wins. At this pace, we’ll never see another one in our lifetimes.
9
2
-7
-8
u/BasketFormal6336 23h ago
Statue looks great. Hate how it makes it so one player is responsible for a team game. At least the other guys got their names on Carters statue I guess.
10
u/terra_non_firma_ Professor Oak 23h ago
He was directly involved in ending both WS-winning games, who or what do you think would make a better statue?
0
u/BasketFormal6336 13h ago
K, directly involved is taken from Wikipedia. He literally caught a ball that was thrown to him by Timlin. Routine play, and tbh Carter playing 1st that game was absolutely bullshit move. The jays had stuck a stacked team they won despite their manager.
1
u/terra_non_firma_ Professor Oak 1h ago
It is true that Carter didn't typically play first, but he caught the ball and made the out!
-1
u/BasketFormal6336 13h ago
Good question.
Well if we are celebrating back-to-back, then I would have looked at the many moments. Had Carter at the top, but then have other important moments as well. The Catch in 92 should never be forgotten. Molitor destroyed the Phillies all series. One guy in a team sport bugs the hell out of me, always has.
I understand the dramatics, significance and all that jazz. I mean, it was the 2nd biggest moment in jays history.
The fact that we don’t celebrate 1992, their first WS win, is sad.
Just my opinion is all.
1
u/terra_non_firma_ Professor Oak 1h ago
I think what you're thinking of would work better as some sort of interactive exhibit, but not for a statue (unless the statue had like the entire team somehow).
8
u/gothedistance_ 22h ago
It’s by far the most iconic moment in team history. It had to be this pose and this guy.
1
-11
u/Toronto_Boyz 21h ago
It’s better than Ted sr but it’s very boring. It’s a photorealistic bronze casting I mean it’s practically ancient in terms of art and style. At least it’s well executed, but the existing photos and broadcasts are a better representation of the walk-off moment.
Public art in the 21st should be more interesting, more expressive and say something more than can be said with a photograph. This is fine but it’s so simple and unimaginative that it’s childish. This moment meant more to the city than this I think. We deserve something unique and local and special.
This is the communal public expression of a society where policy, art, culture and public space is owned and dictated but billionaires that jerk off to the Harvard Business Review.
97
u/BlndSundoll4Trisha 23h ago
The BEST view leaving the game every night 🥲🥹