Toronto Blue Jays: John Gibbons gets the send-off he deserves

After months of speculation, the Toronto Blue Jays finally announced that manager John Gibbons will not return giving fans a chance to give him the proper send-off.

The Toronto Blue Jays finally ripped off the band-aid when they announced that John Gibbons won’t be returning as the manager next season.

Unlike the messy departures involving Roberto Osuna and Josh Donaldson, the team made sure that Gibbons got the send-off he deserves. In the final home game as manager, the team ensured that their manager went out on a winning note but Gibby also got to have some fun with it.

It would have been nice if this game took place at the normal 7:07 start than the late afternoon start but luckily the fans in attendance made sure to show their love for the Blue Jays manager.

There aren’t many coaches who have had the opportunity to return after a rough first go around and go out on a high note despite the team’s struggles the past couple of seasons. Also judging by his reaction in the press conference, Gibbons seems content with just being able to stick around when he could have been gone when the new regime took over.

"“I can’t thank him enough for keeping me around,” Gibbons told reporters of Atkins keeping him around. “And he put a lot of money in my back pocket, so that’s not that bad, either.”"

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Gibbons also admits that he doesn’t have the energy to go through a full rebuild and there aren’t many managers who would want to either. Also, credit the front office staff for discussing with Gibbons how they wanted to move forward rather than casting him off to the side.

Seeing how he kept a professional approach throughout the season and didn’t let the outside noise impact his ability to manage the team.

At the same time, the media didn’t have an issue with Gibbons and wanted to make sure the fans can appreciate what he brought to the team which most of them did.

Luckily for Gibbons, he doesn’t have to think about what he’s going to do next year considering he has another year on his deal . Also, if he wants to come back to the organization one day it appears that the door could remain open.

At this point, Blue Jays fans should be thrilled with the way Gibby conducted himself considering how he upfront he was with the way the team performed and didn’t make it about him.

The next manager will have some tough shoes to fill and hopefully, he gets in touch with Gibbons and gets his advice for how the team operates and how to keep a good rapport with the media.

What are you favourite moments from Gibbons’ time in Toronto and who would be your next choice for manager? Let us know in the comments below.