Toronto Blue Jays: John Gibbons reportedly set to be fired by next week

By Paul Taylor | May 31, 2018

ST. PETERSBURG, FL - AUGUST 22: Manager John Gibbons #5 of the Toronto Blue Jays looks on from the dugout during the third inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays on August 22, 2017 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images) /

According to former Globe and Mail columnist Marty York, the Toronto Blue Jays will fire manager John Gibbons by next week.

At the weekend, we wrote an article suggesting John Gibbons‘ job as Toronto Blue Jays manager was safe for now. And we came to this conclusion after comments from a certain Steve Simmons.

Now, we’re well aware of the general perception regarding the Toronto Sun columnist. However, in fairness to Simmons, his opinion actually made a lot of sense.

Essentially, Simmons wrote that Gibbons would be kept around for the foreseeable future, to take the brunt of any frustration from the Blue Jays’ fan base. He went on to explain that if the Blue Jays fired their manager, then all the pressure would shift to management, namely club president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins, who are not exactly popular in Southern Ontario.

Well, it now turns out this line of thinking might have been slightly premature. At least according to the latest speculation, courtesy of Marty York.

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York sent out the following tweet, on Wednesday evening: “I have strong information that John Gibbons will be out as manager of the struggling Blue Jays by next week (and) may be replaced by Eric Wedge.”

York has a resume which includes roles with the Globe and Mail, the Metro, TSN and Sportsnet, covering the CFL and MLB. As such, he certainly has some gravitas within the sports media industry.

If true, it would certainly be a huge shame to see Gibbons leave. He is that rare breed within the Toronto sports industry, who is well-liked by his players and the media alike. However, there is more to him than this.

Purely from a statistical viewpoint, the 55-year-old is the second-most successful manager in franchise history. He has the second-most wins behind the great Cito Gaston and took the Blue Jays to their two most recent postseason appearances, after an absence of 21 years.

And in terms of his actual job as manager, Gibbons has done everything possible with the roster he has been given. The team’s struggles say more about the players on the field, rather than any shortcomings from the manager.

Now admittedly, we did say in our last article on this topic, that the Great Falls, Montana native deserved better than to be kept around as a scapegoat to protect Shapiro and Atkins. And yet, the alternative doesn’t seem fair either.

In any event, all we can now do is wait and see what transpires between now and next week. However, regardless of the outcome, we give a respectful tip of the cap to Gibbons, who has done a fantastic job during his second tenure with the Toronto Blue Jays.

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What do you make of this latest report by York? Do you believe Gibbons will be fired by next week? And if so, do you agree with this alleged decision by the Toronto Blue Jays? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

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