Jays bring Mexican GM in shock hiring
Toronto, ON - March 12th, 2015
Just days before Spring Training, the Toronto Blue Jays have announced that Manuel Almada has taken over General Manager duties from former-GM Alex Anthopoulos. Despite a winning season, the Jays failed to make the playoffs once again in 2014. They have now failed to make the playoffs every year since their 1993 World Series campaign. After heated meetings with upper management prior to the 2015 season, Anthopoulos resigned.
Now the biggest question for many Jays fans is,
who is Manuel Almada?
Born in 1977 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Almada is no stranger to baseball. He grew up watching the Charros de Jalisco play at the University Stadium, also playing for their U17 academy. At 18, the franchise moved but Almada was already making a name for himself in the semi-pro circuits. Debuting for the Saraperos de Saltillo in 1996, Almada had an 8 year career as a light-hitting infielder. He played for Saltillo, Yucatán and Reynosa before retiring in 2004 after only appearing in 8 games for Cancún.
As a hitting and infield coach, he quickly made a name for himself, playing a big role in Puebla's return to the playoffs in 2006. He was part of the 2010 Pericos squad that came second in the Serie del Bicentenario. The next year, Almada moved to Mexico City to become the Diablos' bench coach. After winning the 2014 LMB title, he was hired as Charros de Jalisco manager upon their return to the Pacific League in 2014, leading them to a second place finish in January of this year. Renowned in Mexico for blending analytic with traditional baseball strategies, Almada caught the eye of the Jays front office, who were looking for a new outlook on the game. While Almada was in talks for an international advisory role with the Jays, the GM position became vacant and, in a surprising move, the job was offered to the 38 year old from Jalisco.
Almada emphasizes an aggressive brand of baseball, with lots of baserunning and a contact-oriented approach at the plate. Perhaps due to the Mexican League quality of pitchers, Almada prefers arms that will fetch weak contact instead of hard-throwing pitchers. This in turn leads to him liking versatile defenders who get outs. He's very hands-on and often remains in a calm state. It is expected for Almada to build a multicultural clubhouse that's based on respect and shared accountability.
When asked about his "outsider" status, never being involved with MLB, Almada answered: "I know what it feels like to be an outsider, but here we only speak the language of baseball and wins are the only thing that will make everyone understand us."
"We were looking for fresh ideas, and we decided to look towards the global game, not just MLB." Said team president Philip Beach, "Our organization is entering a decisive moment and Manuel has shown he can be part of winning cultures everywhere he's coached."
As his closing remarks, Almada spoke to the Jays fans: "To the fans here in Toronto and everywhere else in the world, trust us. Baseball connects everybody, and we'll work hard to make sure you stay connected with us and to make the Blue Jays something this city can be proud of."
When asked, one unnamed player said of Almada: "He's all about winning, even the coin flips! I think he'll fit in, this is a hungry clubhouse."
For the first time in years, the Blue Jays look unpredictable. Perhaps that's just what the club needs to turn its fate around. Manuel Almada took an odd route from the fields of Guadalajara to the dugout in Rogers Centre, but he'll get the chance to prove that baseball truly is a universal language.