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Sunday, October 04, 2009

TheStar.com: ‘Kid’ Alex Anthopoulos takes over as Jays GM

BALTIMORE–He’s young, Canadian, obsessed with his work and admits to being not much of an athlete.

But as of Saturday, in replacing the fired J.P. Ricciardi as general manager of the Blue Jays, largely unknown 32-year-old Montreal native Alex Anthopoulos can boast he is one of just 30 people in the world doing his job. And, according to interim president Paul Beeston, there is no interim in the title of the man that will be making Jays’ personnel decisions.

“It’s a tremendous honour, it’s a thrill,” Anthopoulos said during batting practice at Camden Yards ballpark Saturday night. “I almost don’t want to think about it too much because I don’t even want to step outside myself too much, marvel at it or anything like that. I want to remember how hard it was to get to this point. I also want to be respectful of what J.P. did for me.”

Tripon Posted: October 04, 2009 at 05:34 PM | 35 comment(s) Login to Bookmark
Tags: blue jays

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1. Shock Posted: October 04, 2009 at 08:29 PM (#3340103)

This is the first comment on TFA:

He is an ideal cheap puppet to put on a face for Jays. Why would a well established, experienced GM wants to get himself into big dirty mess???It would make sense to pick something cheap in-house.

Honestly, I find it a little hard to disagree.

2. YR Denies Jesus Montero Posted: October 04, 2009 at 08:38 PM (#3340104)

I still remember when Kid Anthopoulos took on Slugger Shapiro in a 23-round donnybrook at the original Madison Square Garden in 1922. Both fighters wore 4oz gloves but only Shapiro wore groin protection, and that turned out to be the difference-maker that night.

3. Jeff K. Posted: October 04, 2009 at 09:58 PM (#3340140)

He's Canadian? I don't know if I like this move.

It's one thing to throw a bone to your fans by adding the odd Canuck player now and again, but GM? The vestigial tails kind of freak other people out, and this is a position requiring good relationships with the other GMs. Combine that with the well-known significantly lower intelligence of the Canadian male vs. American, and that's a huge hole to climb out of.

4. Greg (U)K Posted: October 04, 2009 at 10:00 PM (#3340142)

Combine that with the well-known significantly lower intelligence of the Canadian male vs. American, and that's a huge hole to climb out of.

Hey, I take offence to that
Hardly anyone is aware of how stupid I am!

5. Jeff K. Posted: October 04, 2009 at 10:06 PM (#3340148)

You have "President of the Shooty Fanclub" in your handle. I think everyone is quite aware.

(Double burn!)

6. Athletic Supporter leads the nation in drifters Posted: October 04, 2009 at 10:11 PM (#3340151)

THE Alex Anthopoulos?

7. Random Transaction Generator Posted: October 04, 2009 at 10:12 PM (#3340153)

Combine that with the well-known significantly lower intelligence of the Canadian male vs. American

I guess it would take an American to look at the international stats for IQ and read the numbers wrong, and then post a comment on it. ;)

8. Good cripple hitter Posted: October 04, 2009 at 10:13 PM (#3340155)

I hate this move. As a Jays fan, I want the team to be competative. That's not going to happen under Rogers ownership. I don't blame Anthopoulos for taking the job, but he probably shouldn't have been hired, and it says nothing good about the organization that he was named GM in these circumstances.

9. Greg (U)K Posted: October 04, 2009 at 10:45 PM (#3340166)

At this point I'm just ready to sit back and watch a team that has no intention of spending any money whatsoever for the next 5-10 years.

Anything more will be a pleasant surprise.

10. Weekly Journalist_ Posted: October 04, 2009 at 11:03 PM (#3340171)

His first decision was to isntall souvlaki and gyro stands in the concession areas.

11. Eric P. Posted: October 04, 2009 at 11:16 PM (#3340180)

For the life of me I don't get what Beeston is doing hiring a new permanent GM when he's still looking around for his own replacement. Is that guy going to be forced to keep Anthopoulos in charge? That'd make pretty much any qualified executive turn the Jays down, you'd think.

12. Dan Szymborski

Posted: October 04, 2009 at 11:44 PM (#3340191)

Just a small quibble with the article: Mike Flanagan isn't the Orioles GM or even employed at all with the team at this moment. He was still technically the general manager after MacPhail was hired in 2007 but he didn't actually have any GM-type duties.

Flanagan was an extremely popular Oriole and when his contract ran out last year, the team quietly parted ways with him.

13. Infinite Yost (Voxter)

Posted: October 04, 2009 at 11:56 PM (#3340198)

This article has altogether too many instances of the letter U.

Other than that, I find the sturm und drang a bit much. People around here often express an interest in getting new blood into the big positions. Then when their team doesn't hire Pat Gillick, there's a freakout. He's young and cheap. So were Andrew Friedman and Theo Epstein when they were hired. (Jesus, I just looked up Friedman, and he hasn't had his 33rd birthday yet.) I think it's a bit early to proclaim this move a total stinker.

14. akrasian Posted: October 04, 2009 at 11:58 PM (#3340201)

And let's not forget - since he's an internal hire, he's gotten to learn from Ricciardi.

15. Andere Richtingen

Posted: October 05, 2009 at 12:02 AM (#3340202)

Alex Anthopoulos? Hmm, that doesn't sound Canadian to me.

16. kwarren Posted: October 05, 2009 at 12:29 AM (#3340222)

I guess it would take an American to look at the international stats for IQ and read the numbers wrong, and then post a comment on it. ;)

America has developed a unique IQ scale just for Americans, so that the national average would be 100. Having the average American IQ come in at 94 as the international scale indicated, just didn't cut it for a country of their stature, so an adjustment was necessary. Everything is fine now; the average American IQ is now 100 just like the rest of the world.

17. Sleepy supports unauthorized rambling Posted: October 05, 2009 at 12:46 AM (#3340227)

THE Alex Anthopoulos?

This will look like a truly brilliant move when Godzilla finally gets around to ravaging toronto...

18. winnipegwhip Posted: October 05, 2009 at 01:33 AM (#3340239)

To be considered a real Canadian nowadays one must have Singh in your name.

19. Infinite Yost (Voxter)

Posted: October 05, 2009 at 01:54 AM (#3340246)

As of 2007, the most common surname in Canada was Li. Singh didn't turn up in the top 20, according to the CBC.

Just for the record.

20. Greg (U)K Posted: October 05, 2009 at 02:29 AM (#3340269)

To be considered a real Canadian nowadays one must have Singh in your name.

As of 2007, the most common surname in Canada was Li. Singh didn't turn up in the top 20, according to the CBC.

Well, I did just take in a movie at Yonge and Eglinton with my friend named Singh. So I think that definatively proves winnipeg right.

21. Matthew E Posted: October 05, 2009 at 02:59 AM (#3340282)

Yes, but your last name is Li, so that proves Voxter right.

22. jonas Posted: October 05, 2009 at 03:36 AM (#3340305)

the well-known significantly lower intelligence of the Canadian male vs. American

The objective international study of these matters is PISA, which assesses students from various countries. Canada, as you can see, ranked 3rd to 7th, while the US was not in the top 20 in any category.

Must be our females.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Programme_for_International_Student_Assessment#2006_survey

23. Boileryard Posted: October 05, 2009 at 03:50 AM (#3340310)

I always get Alex Anthopoulos mixed up with Alex Andreopoulos, Toronto's bullpen catcher. Hopefully it'll become easier once I start to regularly curse about one or the other.

24. RJ in TO Posted: October 05, 2009 at 03:51 AM (#3340312)

Must be our females.

It almost certainly is. As an example, for as long as I've known her, my wife has never been wrong.

25. Tripon Posted: October 05, 2009 at 03:53 AM (#3340313)

So American women are dumb?

26. Jeff K. Posted: October 05, 2009 at 04:21 AM (#3340331)

It almost certainly is. As an example, for as long as I've known her, my wife has never been wrong.

Well yes, but penguins don't really speak or make decisions, so that's not a hard bar to duck under.

27. asinwreck Posted: October 05, 2009 at 04:47 AM (#3340350)

I wish John Brattain was around to comment in this thread.

28. Athletic Supporter leads the nation in drifters Posted: October 05, 2009 at 05:42 AM (#3340365)

If they spell it "Programme," well, that sounds like a biased source to me.

29. Jeff K. Posted: October 05, 2009 at 07:37 AM (#3340380)

I like how everyone is addressing my intelligence comment 100% seriously, as if it did not, in fact, come directly after a sentence where I said that Canadians have vestigial tails.

30. Biff isn't really an apt handle anymore Posted: October 05, 2009 at 07:44 AM (#3340383)

Where do Americans with Canadian ancestry fall on the intelligence scale?

(This being purely hypothetical, of course.)

31. Walt Davis Posted: October 05, 2009 at 08:05 AM (#3340386)

Canadians have vestigial tails.

Nobody can question this claim. Helps with the balance while skating.

32. Jeff K. Posted: October 05, 2009 at 09:42 AM (#3340400)

Also for drilling into trees so they can drink the sap.

I just saw a white-breasted abootler this morning. Didn't have the heart to tell him it was a telephone pole.

33. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Griffin (Vlad) Posted: October 05, 2009 at 11:31 AM (#3340417)

I like how everyone is addressing my intelligence comment 100% seriously, as if it did not, in fact, come directly after a sentence where I said that Canadians have vestigial tails.

I went to high school with a girl who was born with a vestigal tail. She was born in West Virginia, and her parents were first cousins.

They cut the tail off when she was a baby, but you could still see the little scar.

34. OCD SS Posted: October 05, 2009 at 11:51 AM (#3340425)

Vestigial tails will be the new tramp stamp.

35. winnipegwhip Posted: October 05, 2009 at 04:23 PM (#3340634)

So if I am going to book a hotel room for the afternoon I should be registered as John Li. Good to know.

I just shouldn't use that surname to get a seat on a Greyhound Bus.

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TheStar.com: ‘Kid’ Alex Anthopoulos takes over as Jays GM

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