Charlie

Montoyo

Montero, who managed the Blue Jays from 2019 to 2022, is the most notable addition to newly-minted manager Pedro Grifol’s staff. Ethan Katz will return as Chicago’s pitching coach and José Castro, who was the Braves’ assistant hitting coach for the last eight years, will take over as the club’s hitting coach. Former big leaguer Chris Johnson is the White Sox new assistant hitting coach.

It has been a pretty dreadful first half in Toronto relative to the lofty preseason expectations, but this news still comes as a shock. Montoyo departs with an overall managerial record of 236-236 (.500) across three-plus seasons at the helm for the Blue Jays, including a 91-71 record in 2021 and a 46-42 mark here in 2022. As it stands right now in mid-July, the club is 15 1/2 games back of the first-place Yankees in the American League East but a half-game up on the Mariners for the third American League Wild Card spot. John Schneider, who had been serving as the Jays’ bench coach, will fill the role of interim manager through the end of the year.

Martinez took out the lineup card and got into it with Eddings about his strike zone from the night before and was ejected. He was also fined. It’s not clear whether or not Martinez plans to appeal.

It’s a well-earned extension for Montoyo, who guided the Jays to the playoffs in 2020 before falling just short in 2021 despite 91 wins. Toronto is loaded this season and has the young talent to make them contenders for a while.

The Blue Jays will have a five-game homestand against the Marlins and Astros, and that series will not be played in Dunedin, Florida -- where they have been playing home games -- but in Buffalo. As Davidi notes, the hope was for the club to return to Canada at this point, but since Ontario is currently on lockdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic, that’s not a possibility. Toronto played its home games in Buffalo during the 2020 season, as well. With Toronto playing in Lehmen Stadium, the Triple-A club that normally plays its home games in Buffalo will play their homer games in Trenton, New Jersey.

It makes sense, so Montoyo doesn’t enter the season with lame duck status. After the Jays went 67-95 during his first year at the helm in 2019, they went 32-28 last season and made the playoffs under the expanded structure. After their adds this winter, hopes are high once again.

You might remember that the Canadian government did not allow the Blue Jays to stage games in Toronto last season, which forced the club to use its Triple-A affiliate’s stadium in Buffalo, New York. The plan is to get Triple-A Buffalo back up and running this year, so the Jays may have to find yet another different place to call home. Nightengale hears that the team’s spring training complex in Dunedin, Florida is the likely alternative.

Before there is any further griping about Cash’s early hook on Blake Snell in Game 6 of the World Series, remember that the BBWAA’s ballots are all submitted before the start of the postseason. Rick Renteria, who was let go by the White Sox last month, has also been named a finalist. Blue Jays skipper Charlie Montoyo is the other. The winner of this award will be revealed next Tuesday night at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network.

The Rays hold a 1-0 lead. The game will be continued starting at 1:07 PM on Sunday, which will then be followed by their regularly scheduled game -- that will now only be seven innings.

The two teams were set to play a doubleheader on Saturday and another game on Sunday, but Citizens Bank Park has been closed until further notice after a Phillies coach and home clubhouse staffer tested positive for COVID-19. Montoyo said it’s possible the Blue Jays might stay in Washington, D.C., where they’re finishing up a series against the Nationals on Thursday, before traveling to Atlanta next week. What a mess.