Ken Huckaby’s abrupt firing as Buffalo Bisons’ manager Thursday was apparently no fault of his own.
Ahead of the Toronto Blue Jays’ 10-5 win over the Baltimore Orioles at Sahlen Field, general manager Ross Atkins told reporters Friday that Huckaby was let go in response to the organization’s “financial hardship” resulting from the coronavirus pandemic and the possibility of having two fewer minor-league affiliates in 2021.
With uncertainty ripe in minor-league baseball, the Blue Jays opted to employ fewer “leaders,” said Atkins, and plan to fill Huckaby’s job with an internal candidate. Though Atkins did not name any potential candidates, one possibility is Cesar Martin, a 40-year-old former minor-league catcher whom the club appointed manager of their Double-A affiliate, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, last November.
Martin was named 2019 Florida State League Manager of the Year for his work at the High-A level, leading the Dunedin Blue Jays to an 80-55 record last season. The Blue Jays may also consider former Bisons outfielder Casey Candaele, who previously managed in Dunedin and short-season Vancouver.
People are also reading…
“At least in our view, it was something we felt like we had to do,” said Atkins.” As it relates to Ken and specifically, as we thought about how we can be more efficient, we had to decrease the overall number of leaders in our organization and contributors. It was more just circumstances than nothing he has certainly done. ... He’s had a significant impact here. I feel strongly about the person, the character, his contributions and just a very tough decision we had to make.”
Huckaby, a former Blue Jays catcher, was scheduled to manage the Bisons in 2020 before the minor-league baseball season was canceled in June. He spent the past few weeks running the Blue Jays’ alternate training site in Rochester, which closed Monday. The 49-year-old was in Buffalo this week to meet with the Blue Jays and Bisons front office.
Huckaby told The Buffalo News last month that he signed a two-year contract with the Blue Jays last November and expected to manage the Bisons in 2021. Many MLB teams have recently cut staff in the minor leagues as both side work to extend their development agreement beyond this month.
The importance of developing prospects in Triple-A was illustrated Friday as the Blue Jays’ homegrown talent helped them chase Orioles starter Jorge Lopez after only two innings. Toronto plated six runs in the second inning, including a solo homer by Randal Grichuk and former Bisons outfielder Teoscar Hernandez’s single through the right side scored two in a 10-5 win.
Hernandez was one of four former Bisons with multiple hits, joining Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Jonathan Davis.
The Blue Jays’ Taijuan Walker pitched three hitless innings and was relieved by top prospect Nate Pearson, who earned his first major league win and used a 101.5 mile-per-hour fastball to strikeout Austin Hays during a scoreless fourth inning. Though the Blue Jays have clinched a playoff spot, they can improve their seeding over the final two games of the season.
“Everybody did something at different times this season to help us win games,” said Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo.
