Those in the PR field know that it’s always easiest to deliver bad news when the audience’s attention is directed elsewhere. The Toronto Blue Jays certainly seemed to know that.
Wednesday marked the start of NHL free agency, which is a huge deal for a city full of hockey fans like Toronto. You have Maple Leafs fans frantically checking their phones to see if anything can be done to end their 55-year Stanley Cup drought. So, the Blue Jays thought it was a solid time to announce that they had fired manager Charlie Montoyo just as the NHL free agency frenzy got underway.
Charlie Montoyo has been fired as manager of the Blue Jays, sources tell @TheAthletic.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 13, 2022
From a baseball standpoint, it was a shocking move. The Blue Jays’ issues this season have mainly been in their bullpen (4.26 bullpen ERA). Despite that, they are currently the third Wild Card team in the American League. And though they haven’t played at last season’s 91-win pace, they’re 1.5 games out of the top Wild Card spot. Toronto also won on Tuesday night. The timing was curious — to say the least.
So, you really can’t blame fans for making plenty of jokes about NHL free agency.