Blue Jays Fire Charlie Montoyo

11:37 am: Blue Jays announced the move via a press release. Montoyo has been “released from his duties as manager” (i.e. dismissed) in favor of bench coach John Schneider, who will hold the position on a temporary basis until the end of the 2022 season. Triple-A coach Casey Candeley joins the major league staff as interim coach on the bench also.

11:15 am: Blue Jays have sacked coach Charlie Montoyo, according to Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (Via Twitter). The decision comes barely three months after Montoyo Signed a one-year extension That lasted until the end of the 2023 season.

It’s rare to see a team that’s over four games in the .500 and has a wild card spot ousting their captain, but Jay from Montoyo in the midst of a horrific stretch has them dropping nine of their past eleven games. That includes a sweep at the hands of the hot Mariners who used a four-game winning streak over Toronto to pull himself back during half a game from the wild card spot that the recently floundered Blue Jays are clinging to. ESPN’s Jeff Bassan adds that “questions in the club about leadership” also contributed to Montoyo’s dismissal (Twitter link).

It has been an unexpectedly mediocre season for the Blue Jays family in general. While their lineup was well above average overall – Toronto’s hitters hit .259/ .321/ .435, which is fine for a fifth in the 111 WRC+ – that masked a dismal mid-season stretch where Jays was one of the The lowest scoring team in the league a few weeks ago. Even with these solid averages stats, Toronto ranks only 11th in total points scored (401), and its offense wasn’t the overpowering unit he expected the most.

Whoever Bo BechetAnd the Tuscar Hernandez And the Vladimir Guerrero Jr. She was better than the average hitter but shy of her recent production levels (Bichette in particular). Off-season purchase Matt Chapman He’s been better than he’s been in the past two seasons with Oakland, but he has yet to rebound to the form he showed before his 2020 hip surgery.

There were similar unexpected problems on the show’s crew, with Jose PeriosUnexpected downturn chief among them. Longtime top seed and 2021 deadline acquisition for Jays signed a seven-year contract extension in the offseason and promptly followed up with his worst performance since his rookie season.

Berrios was the consistency image for the Twins from 2017 to 21 and emerged as his normally strong personality along the Toronto stretch after the trade last July. However, it faltered during the 2022 season with a 5.38 ERA and a low strike rate of 20.7% by 95 1/3 frames. Alternating teammate, signing free agent off-season Yossi Kikuchifaced similar difficulties in the first season of his three-year deal. hyun jin ryu He lost the season due to Tommy John’s surgery. Injuries prevented Nate Pearson Who took the hill.

Of course, those flaws certainly don’t fall squarely on Montoyo’s shoulders, but he will be the one to take the blame for the struggles of these expected contributors and the team’s often recent string of losses. He became the third coach to be fired this season alone, as both Joe Girardi (Phelez) and Joe Madon (Angels) were both fired earlier this year.

At least in terms of win and loss record, Montoyo would go down as one of the most successful managers launched in recent memory. Despite taking charge in the final stages of rebuilding in 2019, he has led Jay to a record 236-236 in his three-plus seasons on the job. Prior to his time with the Jays, bilingual Montoyo was one of the most successful minor league managers in the history of the Rays franchise and also spent four seasons as a coach on the bench at Tampa Bay. Given this history and track record, it stands to reason that he could find himself going through some casual training and/or management searches – if his wish is to go straight back to the bunker, of course.