Why managerial change isn’t solution to Blue Jays’ problems
1:43 | May 8, 2024
Arden Zwelling and Shi Davidi join Jamie Campbell to discuss why firing Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider would not fix the long-term problems that the team is facing so far this season.
The Toronto Blue Jays don’t have a plan. That is the problem. Whatever general manager Ross Atkins laid out on Sunday afternoon ain’t it, either, and the franchise would be best-served to move on entirely and start over with a new regime.
Atkins is not close to the level of Alex Anthopoulos, which is why he cannot see the forrest through the trees. As the Jays slump in yet another disappointing season, Toronto is faced with a tough choice: Should Atkins trade away star talent and retool, or make one last run to the postseason? At two games under .500 entering play on Sunday — and well out of the AL East chase — the Jays may have no choice but to embrace the former. Atkins does not see it that way.
“It just doesn’t make any sense for us (to trade Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Bo Bichette),” Atkins said. “There will be occasional times when you’re talking to other executives, when they’ll ask if you’d consider it, and we just say it’s not something that we have spent any time on. Because they are so talented and such great teammates, they are attractive to other teams, so they will call.”
Ross Atkins plan for the Toronto Blue Jays isn’t good enough
Bichette will be a free agent following next season, and Guerrero Jr. will be one of the top sluggers on the market next winter barring a contract extension. It would be a surprise for either to sign an extension prior to free agency, especially with Atkins at the helm.
To make matters worse, Atkins doesn’t see the point of a managerial change as well.
