The Devil Rays start selling individual tickets to the general public for the team’s inaugural season. The Opening Day game will sell out in 17 minutes.
1997 – The Rockies sign free agent P Darryl Kile to a three-year contract.
1997 – The Tampa Bay Devil Rays agree to terms with free agents P Wilson Alvarez, to a five-year contract, and OF Dave Martinez to a two-year contract.
1997 – The Arizona Diamondbacks obtain 3B Matt Williams from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for 3B Travis Fryman, P Tom Martin, and $3 million.
Special Memory or Event? Want to have some fun? Advertise your business? Dedicate this page On November 27, 1997, Hall of Famer Buck Leonard dies at the age of 90. Regarded as one of the greatest players in Negro Leagues history, Leonard starred for the powerhouse Homestead Grays, who won nine consecutive pennants. Leonard…
The New York Mets sign pitcher Juei Ushiromatsu, the first Japanese player to sign directly with a major league team without playing professionally in Japan.
1997 – Pitcher Doug Henry is signed as a free agent. The reliever posts a three-year mark of 11-8 with five saves and a 3.88 ERA.
1997 – The Toronto Blue Jays sign free agent reliever Randy Myers to a three-year contract.
1997 – The last parcels of land for a new downtown ballpark near the old Union Station terminal are acquired by the H.S.A. The largest sale is from a man named Billy Marlin. Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum (HOK) are already on board with a stadium design and Brown and Root will serve as project managers for stadium construction. In other news, the Astros sign outfielder Dave Clark to a free agent contract. Clark bats .206 in 93 games during one disappointing season in Houston.
1997 – Tim Johnson is hired as manager of the Toronto Blue Jays. He succeeds Cito Gaston, who was fired in September after having led the Blue Jays to World Series titles in 1992 and 1993. Johnson, a former bench coach with the Expos and Red Sox, managed the Triple-A Iowa Cubs in 1997, and beat out three others for the job: Buck Martinez, Larry Bowa, and American League Manager of the Year Davey Johnson, who interviewed in Toronto after leaving the Orioles.