Former Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons has been hired as the bench coach for the New York Mets under new manager Carlos Mendoza.
Per Mike Puma of the New York Post:
Mets are hiring former Blue Jays manager John Gibbons as their bench coach, source confirms. First reported by @WillSammon and @Ken_Rosenthal
It's a good addition to Mendoza's first staff in Queens as Gibbons brings a lot of experience to the role.
The 61-year-old spent 11 years as the manager of the Jays across two separate stints. He went 793-789 in that time and took the Jays to the playoffs twice. Both of those appearances (2015 and 2016) resulted in the Jays reaching the ALCS, the last time the franchise has accomplished that. They have failed to even win a single playoff game in each of the 2020, 2022 and 2023 playoffs.
As a player, Gibbons spent two years in the big leagues with the Mets. He had 11 career hits in 18 games, posting a .220 batting average. He hit one career major league home run. He was a catcher.
This new staff is taking over the crew that was led by Buck Showalter, who was not renewed at the end of the season. Given the financial power of owner Steve Cohen, working with the Mets has major advantages, so it's easy to understand why Gibbons would want to be involved. Despite finishing fourth in the National League East last season, they won 100 games just two years ago.
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