Was it only two years ago when Canada was infatuated with the Toronto Blue Jays’ playoff chase?
Sportsnet was boasting about its massive TV ratings for Blue Jays games, even while NHL training camps were opening, the NFL season had just started and CFL teams were jockeying for postseason berths. How the mighty have fallen! Or maybe we should say, “What a difference a couple years make!”
Only obsessed Jays followers are paying attention as Canada’s lone MLB team winds down its season. Since third baseman Josh Donaldson was dealt to Cleveland, few fans could name more than two players on the roster. And how many could list the starting lineup? Uhhh, there’s Kevin Pillar and, uhhhhh . . .
The Blue Jays brass started a franchise makeover with a front-office purge during the offseason. A team that made back-to-back postseason appearances now seems years away from challenging again, even with high-profile prospects in the system like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette. John Gibbons knows he’ll be replaced before next season, but he got ejected the other night for the seventh time this season, the most by any manager this season. At least Gibbons is going down swinging.