The Blue Jays are parting ways with longtime manager John Gibbons

Sep 26 2018, 11:10 pm

John Gibbons won’t be back next season.

According to multiple reports, the Toronto Blue Jays will make it official on Wednesday, giving their longtime manager one last hurrah in front of the hometown fans.

The Blue Jays play their last home game of the season Wednesday against the Houston Astros, before heading on the road for their final three games, in Tampa Bay.

Manager of the Blue Jays from 2004 to 2008, Gibbons returned to the organization in 2013. Under his leadership, the team provided some of the greatest memories in franchise history during the 2015 and 2016 postseasons.

Only Cito Gaston has managed the Blue Jays longer and won more games than Gibbons, who has compiled a 791-787 record in 11 seasons in charge.

But with most of the core of the 2015 and 2016 teams now past their prime or moved on to other teams, the Blue Jays have plummeted. They currently sit in fourth place in the American League East Division with a 71-87 record and have been out of playoff contention for some time.

The team is now in a full-scale rebuild.

“Maybe they would benefit from getting a new fresh face that could grow with the young players. I’m not so sure I want to go through one of those things – a total rebuild,” Gibbons said, when pressed about his future last month.

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