AA leaving?
- Thread starter Joe S.
- Start date
Ken Rosenthal confirmed it. In a series of tweets this morning:
Source confirms: Anthopoulos leaving #BlueJays. First reported: @ShiDavidi.
Sources: #BlueJays offered Anthopoulos long-term contract. His departure is not over terms or money.
If not over money, Anthopoulos? departure almost certainly linked to changing dynamic of #BlueJays? front-office with Shapiro?s arrival.
Shapiro influence expected to be more on business. But Anthopoulos might have balked if he perceived that influence extending to baseball.
No GM jobs currently open. Not like Anthopoulos is jumping to another job. He will need to sit out for a time if he wants to be a GM again.
Source confirms: Anthopoulos leaving #BlueJays. First reported: @ShiDavidi.
Sources: #BlueJays offered Anthopoulos long-term contract. His departure is not over terms or money.
If not over money, Anthopoulos? departure almost certainly linked to changing dynamic of #BlueJays? front-office with Shapiro?s arrival.
Shapiro influence expected to be more on business. But Anthopoulos might have balked if he perceived that influence extending to baseball.
No GM jobs currently open. Not like Anthopoulos is jumping to another job. He will need to sit out for a time if he wants to be a GM again.
And from TSN's Rick Westhead:
Source: In their 1st & only meeting, new Jays prez Mark Shapiro scolded Alex Anthopolous & staff for trading so many top prospects this yr
Good chance #BlueJays execs such as Tony LaCava (VP/baseball ops) and Perry Minasian (director, pro scouting) will also look to leave team.
Source: In their 1st & only meeting, new Jays prez Mark Shapiro scolded Alex Anthopolous & staff for trading so many top prospects this yr
Good chance #BlueJays execs such as Tony LaCava (VP/baseball ops) and Perry Minasian (director, pro scouting) will also look to leave team.
bustaheims
Active member
Yeah, this is a little disheartening, but, being that there's nowhere for him to go, maybe something could be worked out. I doubt it, but you never know.
Heroic Shrimp
New member
All this because they just had to force Beeston out.
GhostofPotvin29
New member
Bummed by that, I definitely grew to really like AA.
L K
Active member
Potvin29 said:
It's the Toronto sports way. Get something positive to latch on to...and then watch everything fall apart...or ownership gets involved and screws it up. It's not like Shapiro is a slouch when it comes to management but I'm a little wary of him to be honest given that the goodwill of this team was built with AA. To change course when we finally have some success is just unbelievably frustrating.
I'm starting to have that nagging feeling that the team ends up worse next yearthan last year. I'm pretty sure we lose one of Estrada/Price in free agency and I honestly don't trust this ownership to adjust payroll.
WhatIfGodWasALeaf
Active member
There are many GM's that sorta push the chips into the middle and then crash and burn, AA did it and was a whisker away from getting them to the promised land.
I don't imagine he'll be out of work long, some teams whose GM's are not on the most solid footing will probably explore him as an option.
Does Shapiro step in as GM?
I don't imagine he'll be out of work long, some teams whose GM's are not on the most solid footing will probably explore him as an option.
Does Shapiro step in as GM?
Kin
New member
I think the only troubling thing with this is that the success of whatever AA tried to do this year depended a lot on keeping this current group together and seeing it begin to unravel might signal even bigger changes.
But that said, it's hard not to see Shapiro's point when you look at the two teams who are in the World Series. If the Jays are unable to sign Price, which was always going to be a long shot, then they're in a real tough spot next year because they've dealt away just about all of their near-MLB prospects and they've got a rotation that would need to be built on money that they may not really have.
I don't think that AA's strategy of building through trading prospects instead of developing them and playing them can't work but I think that if it does, you need to have a better record with your trades than he ultimately did.
But that said, it's hard not to see Shapiro's point when you look at the two teams who are in the World Series. If the Jays are unable to sign Price, which was always going to be a long shot, then they're in a real tough spot next year because they've dealt away just about all of their near-MLB prospects and they've got a rotation that would need to be built on money that they may not really have.
I don't think that AA's strategy of building through trading prospects instead of developing them and playing them can't work but I think that if it does, you need to have a better record with your trades than he ultimately did.
GhostofPotvin29
New member
Nik the Trik said:
A fair number of their near-MLB ready prospects recently graduated too though, no? Thinking guys like Pillar, Travis, Sanchez, Stroman, Osuna, possibly Pompey.
Definitely not as 'stocked' as before but there's still a good number of guys in the lower leagues (Harris, Pentecost, Alford, Reid-Foley spring to mind) and the MLB team offensively/defensively at least looks pretty set for a few years.
It does feel like the Toronto way... ownership screwing with chemistry. AA was basically part of the roster, it was a perfect storm of skill and personalities. AA was a huge part of it. Why screw with it?L K said:
Fire this Shapiro clown and give his job to AA. I guarantee all Jay fans and players would be happier then they are today. This is a ridiculous scenario. Sure he traded a bunch of pitching prospects but don't forget we kept the best ones... Sanchez, Stroman, and Osuna.
Kin
New member
Potvin29 said:
Which really isn't much in the way of a young core to build around. Especially not if you look at the young homegrown talent currently on the Mets or the slightly more veteran homegrown talent of the Royals. For the most part you're talking about bullpen arms and guys who are long shots to ever be all-star caliber players.
Potvin29 said:
Is there a "good" number of guys comparatively? Or is that just the reality that any team at any point will have some decent low level prospects?
And until we see how the rotation plays out I don't think we know what the team will look like offensively/defensively right now. Right now the rotation for next year looks sparse enough that the Jays are either going to have to sign free agents at a high cost, which might necessitate cuts elsewhere, or will have to trade some of their hitting for pitching which ultimately leads to the same result.
Just personally, I think it's absolutely fair for the folks running the club to look at the 4 teams that made the LCS and wonder why they're paying the most for the team with the least certain future.
Highlander
Active member
AA trades away Lind gets Estrada, AA trades Lawrie brings in Donaldson, AA trade Reyes brings in Tulio, AA signs Russ Martin, AA trades for Price, Lowe etc in an effort to make baseball relevant again in T.O. and boy did he make it relevant again.
Yes he gave up a lot of young talent to do so, but to let him walk after all of this is typical Toronto sports. Ownership gets to involved.. Oh and was just wondering the differencial if Price had not been signed and Toronto faded from the playoff race and what they made when Price was signed and they filled the stadium game in and game out into two playoff series. How much money did AA just make for Rogers?
Yes he gave up a lot of young talent to do so, but to let him walk after all of this is typical Toronto sports. Ownership gets to involved.. Oh and was just wondering the differencial if Price had not been signed and Toronto faded from the playoff race and what they made when Price was signed and they filled the stadium game in and game out into two playoff series. How much money did AA just make for Rogers?
He decided to go for it this year. I respect him for that. If he had gone the other way and dealt everyone for prospects I would have respected him for that too. I didn't want to see this window close without a clear indication of which way the team was going. I'm happy with the way things went. Even if I have to wait another 22 years, I still say it was worth it.
Highlander
Active member
Still don't like it, I was a big fan of AA, seemed to know how to milk the draft in a very big way. Most have come from his scouting years.