He is a close friend and former co-worker of Toronto president Mark Shapiro.
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Atkins will succeed Alex Anthopoulos, who resigned shortly after Shapiro took over the American League East champions.
The Toronto Blue Jays hired Ross Atkins as their new general manager, the club has confirmed.
Atkins says he’s excited and ready for the challenges ahead. Tony LaCava goes from Vice President, Baseball Operations and Interim General Manager to Senior Vice President, Baseball Operations and Assistant General Manager while Ross Atkins is now the Executive Vice President, Baseball Operations and General Manager.
Atkins also comes across as a “player’s GM”, if that’s a label you believe in. He pitched for five seasons in the minor leagues for the organization between 1995 and 1999, pitching two full years in double-A as a right-handed reliever. Atkins was director of player development from 2007-10 and vice president of player development from 2011-14. Their postseason ended with a loss to Kansas City in the AL Championship Series.
I’m not really sure how this is going to work out for Toronto, but the fans were already disappointed with Shapiro for not doing all he could to retain Anthopoulos. He was named executive of the year on the day he announced his decision.
Sports points out, the hiring of Atkins represents the 13th team to change general managers since last year’s Winter Meetings in San Diego. When Shapiro moved to Toronto, he signed LaCava to a multiyear deal.
Atkins was also extremely positive regarding his new colleague, saying that he’s been “overwhelmed by the leadership of Tony LaCava and the character of Tony LaCava”.
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Players developed under his watch include Cody Allen, Lonnie Chisenhall, Kyle Crockett, Tyler Holt, T.J. House, Jason Kipnis, Roberto Perez, Jose Ramirez and Danny Salazar.
