Jays Hire James Click

It flew slightly under the radar, but the Jays announced earlier this week the hiring of James Click as the newly created Vice President of Baseball Strategy for Toronto. Click in his role will “identify best practices, develop plans, and implement strategies.” according to the official release from the club.

Click was a veteran of Baseball Prospectus for several years before joining the Tampa Bay Rays in 2005 as an intern. He worked his way up to Vice President of Baseball Operations by 2017, rising through the levels of the innovative organization. He was hired by the Houston Astros in 2020 in the wake of the cheating scandal that cost then GM Jeff Luhnow his job. He was the GM over three winning seasons, culminating in a World Series win in 2022.

According to reports, Astros owner Jim Crane had grown more active in baseball operations and tensions grew between him and his GM. Contract talks broke down and he offered Click and manager Dusty Baker one year contracts; an unusual reward for winning a World Series. After declining the offer, Click was courted by numerous organizations but was persuaded by Mark Shapiro to join the Jays.