Toronto Blue Jays: 5 franchise records that will never be broken

Opening Weekend may breed eternal hope, but throw out any chance of these Toronto Blue Jays records being broken.

From their inaugural game at a snowy Exhibition Stadium in 1977 to their 2021 Opening Day extra innings upset over the New York Yankees, the Blue Jays have compiled a storied history. With two World Series banners affixed to the rafters and a promising new era just beginning to crest over the horizon, Blue Jays fans should be in for a treat for years to come.

With that being said, there are some club records that are simply out of reach. Whether due to fundamental changes in the sport or sheer incredible achievement, these five records should immortalize the players that set them for the rest of time.

1. Games played in a single season – Tony Fernandez – 163

No list of Blue Jays records is complete without a nod to Tony Fernandez.

The batting section of the Blue Jays’ record book looks like a chalkboard from detention, where the presiding teacher has made somebody write “Tony Fernandez” over and over again.

The Blue Jay lifer may have 11 team records, but perhaps no single one is more untouchable than the mark of 163 games played he set in 1986.

This record is preposterous, simply for logistical reasons. For it to be broken, a Blue Jay would have to play in all 162 games in a season (an increasingly rare feat in the era of player preservation), and have the team tie with another American League outfit for the final Wild Card spot. This would force a Game 163, and only then could the record fall.

Even in a season that was shortened to 60 games, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was the only player to play in every contest. The last Blue Jay to play in all 162 games was Carlos Delgado in 2001.

While it is technically possible to play in 163 games, it would take a cosmic aligning for Fernandez’s record to fall.