Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
The Toronto Blue Jays are off to a terrible start amidst a season where many baseball personalities penciled the Blue Jays in as preseason World Series contenders. However, after 25 games, the Blue Jays have played on par with the Houston Astros and Miami Marlins, hardly asserting themselves as baseball’s best.
The under-performing Blue Jays sit 9-17 with one game remaining in the month of April, and many fans are beginning to question the managing of John Gibbons.
The Blue Jays brain trust summoned Gibbons back to Canada after managing the Jays from 2004 to his eventual firing in 2008. The move surprised many, but he appeared to be just the personality required to lead the brash young Blue Jays.
If you dig a little deeper than the 9-17 record, you will uncover that there may still be hope for the fledgling Jays if they can muster some timely hitting. The Jays are 3-7 in one run games and 12 of their 17 losses have been by two runs or less. That is 12 games that the Blue Jays could have put up a “W” in if they came up with a bloop and a blast.
Fans north of the border are head-hunting and looking for a scapegoat, but Gibbons won’t be the sacrificial lamb … not yet. If this trend continues for another month, then I have a sneaking suspicion the outcome may be different and Gibbons and a few others may be sent packing.
However, the men on the field need to do what they are paid to do, and that is win ball games and start winning them now.
Clayton Richer covers the Toronto Blue Jays for Rant Sports. Follow and interact with him on Twitter at @MLBHotCorner, Facebook, and Google Plus.
