George Bell Wins the First MVP Award in Blue Jays History

On November 17, 1987, George Bell became the first Toronto Blue Jay to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award. The Dominican-born left fielder edged Detroit Tigers shortstop Alan Trammell in the voting, 332 points to 311, capping a season in which Bell hit .308 with 47 home runs and a league-leading 134 RBI.

Bell's 47 home runs set a Blue Jays franchise record, and his power numbers carried a Toronto lineup that won 96 games and stayed in the AL East race until the final week. The Tigers ultimately took the division, but Bell's individual performance left voters with a difficult choice between two deserving candidates. Trammell had hit .343 and played spectacular defense at shortstop for the division champions. Bell won on sheer offensive force.

The award carried extra weight for the Blue Jays franchise. Toronto had joined the American League as an expansion team in 1977, and a decade later the club had its first MVP. The franchise was growing up. Within five years, the Blue Jays would win consecutive World Series titles in 1992 and 1993, establishing themselves as one of the dominant clubs of the early 1990s.

Bell's 1987 season was the peak of a career that produced three All-Star selections in 1987, 1990, and 1991. He drove in more than 100 runs four times and remained one of the most feared right-handed hitters in the league through the end of the decade. The MVP vote announced on this November afternoon was the moment the Blue Jays' identity shifted from expansion club to legitimate contender.