Fastball

Former Toronto Blue Jays Manager Comments on Reaching NLCS with Mets

John Gibbons is back on a big-league bench with the Mets as they try to get to the World Series.

Brady Farkas

Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons in the dugout before the game against the Houston Astros at Rogers Centre in 2018.
Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons in the dugout before the game against the Houston Astros at Rogers Centre in 2018. / Gerry Angus-Imagn Images
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The New York Mets lost on Sunday night in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, falling 9-0 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

With the win, the Dodgers are three wins away from clinching a berth in the World Series. The Mets are now three losses from seeing their season end.

While the players obviously get the credit for the Mets turnaround this season, the coaching staff has a hand as well. Rookie manager Carlos Mendoza has helped navigate the challenges of a big league season and bench coach John Gibbons has been with him every step of the way.

Gibbons is the former manager of the Toronto Blue Jays who helped lead the Jays to the ALCS in both 2015 and 2016.

He spoke with Sportsnet before the game and said that being back in the LCS brings back a lot of good memories from those Toronto times. You can see his comments below:

The 2015 Blue Jays went 93-69 before falling in the ALCS while the 2016 Jays went 89-73 before losing in the same round.

All in all, Gibbons spent 11 years as the manager of the Jays over two different tenures. He was with the team from 2004-2008 and again from 2013-2018. He went 793-789, making the playoffs in just 2015 and 2016.

As for his current team: The Mets will play the Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLCS on Monday afternoon. First pitch from Dodger Stadium is set for 4:08 p.m. ET. Sean Manaea will pitch for New York.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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