Poll Time: Do you approve of the job John Gibbons is doing?

Once again, we haven’t done this for awhile. I would like to do it monthly, but it doesn’t happen that way.

Last time, back in June, we about a .500 team and Gibby had 47% approve, 24% neutral and 29% disapprove.

Now we are 64-50, tied for the top spot in the AL East. But the team is playing very inconsistent baseball.

The biggest thing that has been going on, over the past little while, has been the debate about Aaron Sanchez. It seems like Gibby had a strong voice in how it turned out. Shapiro and Atkins, at least appeared, to have decided that Aaron was going to the pen, but a conversation with Sanchez and Gibby changed their minds. Or that’s the way it looks.

It’s a tough spot for a manager. He wants to ‘win now’ because, if they don’t win now, he might not have a job in the future. But then no manager wants ‘ruined a young pitcher’s arm’ to be a line on their resume.

Beyond that, Gibby seems to have figured out how he wants to use the bullpen. Jason Grilli and Joaquin Benoit have really helped get us to the ‘defined roles’ bullpen that teams like. It is surprising how two pitchers who were really struggling, come to Toronto and have been almost lights out.

The offense has been inconsistent. I don’t know if we should put some of the blame on Gibby for that. We tend to focus batting orders, but then having a guy up a spot too high or down a spot too low doesn’t make all that much difference in the long run. We seem to be a team made up of guys that run very very hot or cold.

I liked Jose Bautista as the leadoff guy. I’m liking Devon Travis there too. I hated Ezequiel at the top of the order. For awhile it seemed like ‘riding the hot hand’ but he was still there long after he turned cold.

I hate the short bench. To me, it really ties the manager’s hands in the late innings. It’s tough to put in a pinch runner or a pinch hitter when you only have 3 guys on the bench.

The players do seem to like Gibby, which has a value. Course, I loved Earl Weaver, and players hated him, but I think times have changed. I don't think you could be a manager if players hate you now.  Casey Stengel used to say that the secret to managing is to keep the guys that hate you away from the guys that are undecided. I think now it is more important to have guys like you.

Give us your vote.