Mark Shapiro’s shadow looms large over Blue Jays’ future

When your franchise’s President & CEO makes a mid-season appearance and your team isn’t on the warpath towards a postseason berth, you know the year has gone awry.

Was there much to gain from Mark Shapiro’s post-trade deadline presser yesterday? Some feel that at least it puts a franchise figurehead in front of cameras and microphones to make them accountable to the fan base.

This has always been a front office that keeps things close to the vest, and anyone hoping to hear about how the front office plans to return this team to the promised land didn’t get any concrete answers. That’s just how this front office (and most modern front offices, frankly) plays things.

Shapiro hasn’t spoken to the media since March, and while his latest press conference unearthed little, it seems like this appearance marked a turn in the dynamic of this regime.

Until this year, Shapiro’s job security hasn’t come into question. His focus on a sorely needed $100 million dollar renovation to the minor league player development complex, followed by a $400 million dollar renovation to the Rogers Centre, has mostly shielded Shapiro from any criticism.

But now, with the Blue Jays in their ninth year under the guise of Shapiro and Ross Atkins, with no playoff wins and a disappointing 2024 campaign at their doorstep, their positions are back under the microscope once again.

The moment the Minnesota Twins eliminated the Blue Jays from the playoffs last year, Atkins’ name came up as one who could be on the chopping block, but Shapiro faced little criticism (aside from the “I’m here to clean up Ross’ mess” press conference at the end of last season).

In that press conference yesterday, Shapiro was asked about Atkins’ job status, and Shapiro didn’t state whether Atkins would remain as General Manager, but he also didn’t dismiss it. Reading the tea leaves, it sounds like the front office will be back at the helm in 2025.

As front office mates with the Cleveland Guardians, Shapiro and Atkins’ fates are intertwined, perhaps closer than any CEO/GM combination in Major League Baseball. It’s hard to imagine one of them being let go without the other following suit, as the two have moved in lockstep in the Blue Jays organization since taking over for Paul Beeston and Alex Anthopoulos at the end of the 2015 season.

But the contract status is a little tricky; Atkins is signed until the end of the 2026 season, while Shapiro’s contract ends next season. If Shapiro leaves his chair as President and CEO, whether it’s via his own volition or otherwise, it’s difficult to see Atkins sticking around for that final year in 2026.

For the items that have been within their control, credit to Shapiro and Atkins for executing on part of the vision they set out to deliver. They modernized the player development complex, they gave Rogers Centre a facelift, and they steadily raised payroll and shopped at the top of the free agent market since the winter of 2019.

But this disaster of a Blue Jays season underscores that it sadly hasn’t been enough to carry this franchise into elite territory. Back in 2021 and 2022, it felt like they were on the doorstep of becoming a perennial contender in the American League East. But for a multitude of reasons, this cast of characters hasn’t been able to go deep into the playoffs.

And while a small subset of fans love to call for John Schneider to be fired, at some point, you have to look upwards and question the people at the top of the food chain rather than several rungs down. I mean, are we going to let this front office fire its third manager in nine years without the President or GM’s position with the club coming up for debate?

With 2024 as a write-off, it feels like 2025 will be a swansong for this configuration of the Toronto Blue Jays. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette could walk away as free agents, and Shapiro as President and CEO might find himself as a free agent as well.

Shapiro’s focus has primarily been on the tentpole projects looming over the Blue Jays organization, and now, with those out of the way, his body of work (along with Atkins), should be towards improving the on-field product.

The same questions about Atkins heading into this year’s trade deadline also encompass the future of Shapiro as CEO as well; do you want someone executing their vision of the club if they don’t have a long-term future with the team?

If there’s one thing that can be gleaned from this front office, it’s that they don’t like to outright fire anybody, but they prefer to use the phrase “re-assign” instead. And that falls in line with Shapiro’s comments yesterday about: “I’m a big believer in continuity and stability.”

That’s probably the reason Schneider hasn’t been removed from the manager’s chair. That’s probably the reason Atkins hasn’t been ousted as General Manager, and likely the same philosophy that will keep him with the team in 2025 as well.

The longer this drags on with no semblance of high-level success, fans won’t just question the General Manager anymore. They’ll also demand answers from the President and CEO. And given how this franchise is at a crossroads, it makes sense to wonder what Shapiro has in store for this team.