Editing John Olerud (section)

=== Toronto Blue Jays ===
Olerud broke into MLB with the Toronto Blue Jays in {{mlby|1989}}, without ever playing in the minors. Prior to the {{mlby|1990}} season, he was named the #3 prospect in MLB by ''[[Baseball America]]''.<ref>[https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=olerud002joh John Olerud Minor League Statistics & History] Baseball-Reference.com. Accessed on August 20, 2020.</ref> He was [[Platoon system|platooned]] by Jays' [[Manager (baseball)|manager]] [[Cito Gaston]] for the first few years of his career, until {{mlby|1992}}, when he became the team's full-time first baseman. In {{mlby|1993}}, his breakout season, he led the American League in batting average (.363), intentional walks (33), [[times on base]] (321), [[on-base percentage]] (.473), [[on-base plus slugging|OPS]] (1.072), and [[Double (baseball)|doubles]] (54, also a career-high), while posting career-highs in home runs (24), RBIs (107), [[Run (baseball)|runs]] (109), and [[Hit (baseball)|hits]] (200). He flirted with a .400 batting average for much of the season, with his average staying higher than .400 as late as August 2.

Despite putting up solid numbers over the next several years, he failed to meet the high expectations placed upon him following his breakout performance in 1993. After the [[1996 New York Mets season|1996]] season, Olerud was battling veteran [[Joe Carter]] and up-and-comer [[Carlos Delgado]] for a spot at either [[first base]] or [[designated hitter]]. Delgado was young, had a bright future and a low salary, while Gaston preferred Carter to Olerud, feeling the latter wasn't aggressive enough at the plate.<ref>[http://www.bluebirdbanter.com/2009/4/8/826987/top-50-all-time-jays-10-john-olerud Top 50 All-Time Jays: #10 John Olerud]</ref> Therefore, Olerud was traded, along with cash, to the [[1997 New York Mets season|New York Mets]] on December 20 for [[Robert Person]].