As interim manager Jeff Ware awaits word on his fate, Bisons blank Rochester to open homestand

The Bisons' interim manager improved to 4-2 with Friday's 3-0 win over the Rochester Red Wings in Sahlen Field and said prior to the game he would like to keep the gig for the rest of the season. The parent club, however, has made no decision on Buffalo in the wake of its organizational upheaval last week.

Ware, Buffalo's second-year pitching coach, took over when Herd manager Casey Candaele headed to Toronto as the the interim bench coach. That domino fell when the Blue Jays fired manager Charlie Montoyo and promoted bench coach John Schneider to the interim gig. 

Ware found out about the Toronto changes on July 13 while having lunch in Des Moines, Iowa, prior to the second game of the Bisons' series against the Iowa Cubs. 

"It was crazy," Ware said. "I remember I was sitting there having an early lunch and I actually got a call from my dad, 'Hey, do you see the news?' I'm thinking what are you talking about. We didn't know until right when it was released.

"We immediately got on the phone, Twitter was blowing up and we found out Casey was gone moments later. He started obviously prepping for his stuff and getting out of town. And tons of phone calls started happening."

One came from Joe Sclafani, the Jays' director of player development, asking Ware to take over the club in the short-term and perhaps for the rest of the season. The Bisons went 3-2 in the final five games in Iowa and nearly 4-1, losing their final game prior to the All-Star break on a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.

"It turned out to be a pretty good week," said Ware. "And it's gonna be I think a really great opportunity and a great experience for me. I do have interest in it. Whether it's just this year, and I go back to pitching coach next year or whatever. Who knows what will happen down the road? But if they do offer it to me for this year, I'd be happy to lead this club."

"We've been with Jeff throughout the year and nothing changes," said outfielder Logan Warmoth, who has been with the Candaele-led Herd all of the last two season. "We all know how he handles a clubhouse. He knows everyone and it's not like he's coming in from a whole other place. He's been here every step of the way."

Ware, 51, is in his second season as Buffalo's pitching coach and seventh in the Toronto organization. He pitched 18 games for the Jays in 1995 and 1996, although his playing career is best known for giving up a home run to Michael Jordan in 1994 while Ware was throwing for Double-A Knoxville and Jordan was dabbling in baseball for the Birmingham Barons.

Candaele went 43-42 this season, as the Bisons opened 30-18 and then struggled in his final six weeks with a 13-24 record. Their starting pitching has been decimated by injuries, both in Buffalo and Toronto, and by callups to the big leagues.

"I'm just jumping right in, really just taken over where Casey left off," Ware said. "Just working their tails off, making sure they hustle around the bases, being on time, playing hard, all those things and having fun. Everybody loved Casey here. It was sad to see him to go but we were also happy to see where he went to, going back to the big leagues."

Ware's club looked sharp Friday before a hip crowd of 13,741. It was Bandits Night, with the Bisons wearing orange and black jerseys in honor of the city's National Lacrosse League entry.

The Herd got all of its runs in the first inning, two on first baseman Spencer Horwitz's long home run to deep right-center, his second in Triple-A. Yusei Kikuchi, down on rehab from Toronto, threw five shutout innings. Four relievers finished a combined four-hitter.

"Casey has been in the game for a long time," Warmoth said. "He had a few rules, mainly just be on time and just play hard. And that's exactly what Jeff says as well. Just be on time, play hard and be a good teammate."

"You have to have fun in this game. You really do," Ware said. "But you also have to be locked in and ready when it comes to game time. Understand your role, understand what it takes to be a big leaguer. What it takes and what the work ethic has to be like are probably two of the biggest things that I took  from Casey."