Jose Reyes, shortstop for the Toronto Blue Jays, first signed with the New York Mets in 1999 at the age of just 16. He spent his first three years from 2000 to 2003 with the Mets minor league teams, getting called up to the majors in June, 2003. He started strong in 2003, batting .307 with 84 hits, 12 doubles, and 13 stolen bases in 69 games. However, the following season he played in just 53 games with the Mets.
Mark Buehrle, starting pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays, was first drafted in 1998 by the Chicago White Sox. He spent the 1999 season in the minor leagues. The following season he was called up to the White Sox and he pitched in 28 games for them. In 2000, Buehrle pitched in 51.1 innings and had a 4-1 record and a 4.21 ERA with 37 strikeouts to 19 walks.
R.A. Dickey, starting pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays, was last year's NL Cy Young award winner. He has had a career in and out of the major and minor leagues since 1996 when he was drafted by the Texas Rangers. Dickey was called up to the majors by the Rangers in 2001 but he played in just four games with them that season. He spent seven years (2001-2006) with the Rangers organization and played in just 76 games with them. His only full season with the Rangers was in 2003 when he played in 38 games, with 116.2 innings pitched, a 5.09 ERA, 9-8 record, and 94 strikeouts to 38 walks.
Jose Bautista, right fielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, was first drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2000. He played in the minor leagues from 2001 to 2003 and then was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles. In 2004, he played in just 16 games for the Orioles, who placed him on waivers in June. The Tampa Bay Rays claimed him off waivers and he played in just 12 games with them before they sold him to the Kansas City Royals. The Royals, like all the teams before them, used Bautista for just 13 games and then traded him to the New York Mets. He never played for the Mets and they traded him back to the Pirates. Bautista ended the 2004 season playing in 23 games for the Pirates and, in total, he played that season in 64 games for four teams.
Edwin Encarnacion, first baseman for the Toronto Blue Jays, was drafted in 2000, at age 17, by the Texas Rangers but a year later they traded him to the Cincinnati Reds. He played for four years in the minor leagues before being called up to the Reds in June, 2005. His first partial season was not strong, ending with a .232 batting average and only 9 home runs. He improved in his second and third years in the majors, batting .276 with 15 home runs in 2006 and .289 with 16 home runs in 2007.
John Gibbons, the 2013 manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, had a very short and limited career as a baseball catcher, playing in only 18 games for the New York Mets in 1984 and 1986. He did not return to major league baseball until 2002 when he was hired to be the first base coach for the Blue Jays. Two years later, he started his first stint as manager of the Toronto team. He lasted in that role until he was fired in June, 2008.