The Blue Jays' "anticipated front-office purge started Thursday night" when the team named Indians VP/Player Personnel Ross Atkins its new GM, replacing the departed Alex Anthopoulos, according to Robert MacLeod of the GLOBE & MAIL. It is believed that interim GM Tony LaCava and Atkins "were the only two serious candidates for the job." LaCava, whom Blue Jays President & CEO Mark Shapiro signed to a contract extension after the conclusion of the '15 season, "will remain with the organization." LaCava’s new title, which is "being described by the team as a promotion," is Senior VP/Baseball Operations. With MLB's winter meetings slated for next week in Nashville, it "only made sense that Shapiro would want to have his new GM by his side" (GLOBE & MAIL, 12/4). In Toronto, Brendan Kennedy notes the 42-year-old Atkins "becomes the seventh GM in Jays' history." Atkins had "spent his entire professional career with the Indians, most of it working under Shapiro." Atkins, who was "formally introduced at a news conference on Friday, has been viewed across the industry as a rising front-office star, known as a skilled evaluator and good communicator" (TORONTO STAR, 12/4). The CP noted Atkins had "interviewed in the past for GM openings" with the Angels and Phillies (CP, 12/3).
LATE TO THE GAME: CBSSPORTS.com's Mike Axisa noted despite signing a seven-year, $217M deal with the Red Sox this week, P David Price is "on the cover" of the Blue Jays' official calendar for '16. Rockies SS Jose Reyes, who "hasn't been a Blue Jay since being traded for Troy Tulowitzki at the deadline, is also in the calendar." Tigers P Daniel Norris, who was traded for Price, "was included too." But Axisa noted to "be fair, this is not the team's fault," as an independent company "licenses the images from MLB and produces the calendars" (CBSSPORTS.com, 12/3).
