The Astros have lined up their first reported interview as they search for a new manager. They’ll meet with veteran skipper John Gibbons on Thursday, according to Mark Berman of Fox 26.
The Texas-raised Gibbons is one of many experienced possibilities to reportedly land on the Astros’ radar early in their quest to replace A.J. Hinch. Gibbons has nearly 1,600 games on his resume, all of which have come with the Blue Jays. The 57-year-old had two separate stints as Toronto’s manager (one from 2004-08, the next from 2013-18), combining for 11 years, a 793-789 regular-season record and a pair of playoff berths. The Blue Jays advanced to the ALCS in each of those two seasons.
After the Blue Jays parted with him, Gibbons spent last season out of coaching. Gibbons made it known back in the fall that he was hoping to get back into managing, but he didn’t receive any reported interviews before now.
He’ll get the job!
Gibby will bring calm and humour and an inner toughness that will be a perfect fit for a team in this much of a mess..This is the perfect choice in this situation. Hire him, Mr. Crane, you won’t regret it. He is also very good at handling a bullpen.
You should like a Gibbons gopher.
Yo, Gibby is the man. Smart move if they hire him.
After all of this, I’m completely uninterested in half of these retreads they’re interviewing.
RIP Astros 2020 season.
Name me an elite, high in demand manager that doesn’t have a job already or cant work bc of suspension? I’ll wait.
They are interviewing him tomorrow,there’s a clue. for yer.
Bochy
I’m not saying he’s elite or high end, but the Astros are set up as a perfect fit for Dusty Baker for a year or two.
I wouldn’t worry all that much honestly. It might have an impact on their seeding, but I highly doubt their manager will be the reason they miss the playoffs, if they somehow don’t make it.
Most managers are middle of the pack guys, and they’re highly interchangeable with little to no effect whatsoever. With the pieces the Astros already have in place, I don’t think their hiring will have any effect on their outcome positive or negative.
Every once in awhile you find a coach that truly impacts his team positively, and one that truly pushes all the right buttons leading to making a drastic change on their ultimate outcome. Again, most managers, however, will make mistakes, mishandle their pen at times, construct their lineup inefficiently, etc. Even still though, the difference between a good manager and an average manager is only a handful of games..
If the Astros were a young, inexperienced team, that needed a headstrong leader, then I’d be worried, but they already have a championship mentality instilled within. They just need someone to pull the strings when necessary, and it is likely whichever coach they pick, he won’t likely do much worse than Cora would have..
What does that last statement even mean? Cora was a bench coach in Houston. If it’s a joke about the camera, it’s just not a very good one.
I agree with this, outside a handful of managers most fall in that 5 plus-5 minus window.
Most great managers just happen to manage great players/teams.
Probably a good choice.
It’s kind of like celebrity softball…. you know, they suck but you watch anyway.
Yes. Hope he gets it. From a Jays fan here I think that hes the guy to weather the storm. Stros fans will like him right off the bat imo.
I hate Houston but I love Gibby; I hope that he lands the job.
Wow! Good for him. Hope he gets the job.
Ok so the division rival Houston is looking for a brand new Manager that will bring success to their team. John Gibbons was the manager for the BJ’s when Bautista hit his homer in the alds in 2016 against my rangers, and when they inevitably won it… How am I supposed to like this?
That was classic eh? lol
You blame the opposing manager and not your own pitcher? You need to come up for air…..
No, trust me on this, I do not like Sam Dyson… he was so frustrating sometimes…. But what I meant was that Gibbons being on that BJ’s team, makes him going to the Astros all that much worse.
@Rangers29
I respect how you put your statement. Your basically trying to give ‘Stro fans some good feelings all the while being a Rangers fan, a team that competes in the same division. If your looking for praise, you found mine.
It was 2015
I wonder the chances of Espada being made the manager.
It seems like he was being seriously considered for quite a few vacancies the last two offseasons.
Gibby to coach, then try to bring in Tony LaCava to Gm…. They already have a good working relationship, and both are highly regarded around the league for their character….. Couldn’t ask for two better guys to overhaul a toxic culture.
Is Jim Fregosi still around?
no Jim is no longer with us. got to see him play and talk to him , many times in the early 70’s.when I was barely a teenager
If they want to finish fifth, Gibby’s their guy..
Just give Espada the chance
Good ole big buck
He’s from Texas…I think he’ll get this job. He proved he can handle a bullpen and big personalities during his last tenure with the Jays. He handled Bautista, Donaldson, Price, Stroman and Sanchez. Those are som big personalities. Not an easy thing to do apparently…
All right, first of all…how good is your poker face?
I’m sticking with Cora as player gm and Beltran as player coach. It’s impossible for the commissioner to punish cheaters, I mean players, so this basically gives the Astros diplomatic immunity.
Ba dum tss.
I’d like to see Gibby interview to replace Cora before he commits to anything like this.
Please no—- Hiring a guy who lied about his past is not the hire either the Red Sox or Astros need at this point.
Pretty sure you have somehow confused Gibby for Tim “I fought in Vietnam” Johnson circa 1998…. although 6 years and 3 managers later Gibbons did get his first crack at managing the Jays, so I can understand the confusion.
LOl— You are probably right… but Gibbons is a horrible Manager and should be at best a bench coach.
Gibbons is a better manager than Farrell. Farrell did guide a Red Sox ship to a World Championship.
And Buhner is correct. Gibbons did not lie about his past. Not sure where you got that info from.
Gibby’s best years happened after AA left the team in 2015. He showed he can be better than an average manager. Players will love playing for him. Astros morale would be fixed quickly with Gibbons. If he’s allowed to call the shots Houston will be in good hands. The one weakness Gibbons has is video challenges, literally no pun intended. Many years he was last or close to last in replay challenges.
is Oprah not available ?
Oprah, my laugh of the day.
Give Espada the chance he deserves and let him manage. Then, bring Gibby aboard to be bench coach and help out. That would be the best thing the Astros could do.
Espada was well aware of the cheating and kept quiet. Cover up artist! He is tainted now.
Good old Paul Molitor is just a few years removed from AL Manager of the Year honors. Wonder if he’ll get any interviews.
Hey might also be a candidate for the Mets (he played there for a short period of time).
Yes, Beltran will be ousted.
Gibbons is a terrible manager. Astros can do way better.
He’s a good manager lol. How could you possibly call him terrible?
Agreed he is terrible.
Why?