Newly aquired Boston Red Sox pitcher Eric Gagne talks with pitching coach John Farrell #52 in the outfield before the Boston Red Sox take on the Baltimore Orioles August 1, 2007 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts.Elsa
Boston Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell will be the next manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, baseball analyst Peter Gammons reported Thursday night, but sources with the Blue Jays say the report is premature.
Gammons tweeted that three general managers have "insisted" to him that the 48-year-old Farrell will get the job following a search by Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos.
Blue Jays president Paul Beeston said Thursday night that he can't confirm the report.
"I can confirm that I haven't talked to Alex [on Thursday]" Beeston said. "We haven't made any decision."
Farrell has been with the Red Sox since 2007 and is considered one of the most respected pitching coaches in the game. He is thought to be a good fit in Toronto given his solid pitching background and the stockpile of talented young arms that the Blue Jays have.
Farrell has talked to the Blue Jays on several occasions about the job opening that was created after Cito Gaston stepped down at the end of the regular season.
The Blue Jays have interviewed a number of candidates, including Boston bench coach DeMarlo Hale, Cleveland Indians first base coach Rob Thomson and Tampa Bay Rays bench coach Dave Martinez.
Farrell, a New Jersey native, was a starting pitcher for Cleveland, California and Detroit before his playing career ended in 1996. From 2001 through 2006 he was the director of player development with the Indians and his work was recognized in 2003 when Baseball America chose Cleveland's as the top farm system in the majors.
Farrell's name is routinely mentioned when there is a manager's job to be filled, and Boston manager Terry Francona said this year it is just a matter of time before another team snaps him up.
"The only question in front of him isn't so much when he'll leave the Red Sox, but what job he'll take when he does," Francona told the Boston Herald. "You spend any time around him, he can be good at whatever he wants. Manager, GM, pitching coach, running a minor-league system, you name it. He's just a special talent."
Anthopoulos declined to comment on his search for a new GM.