Breaking News: Toronto Blue Jays Hire Bobby Valentine

Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The Toronto Blue Jays have hired Bobby Valentine as a special assistant to GM Alex Anthopoulos. It is expected that the former MLB player and manager will be responsible for assisting the Toronto Blue Jays with media relations.

Bobby V spent 16 years managing the Texas Rangers, New York Mets and, most recently, the Boston Red Sox. Fans will most remember Valentine for his questionable antics as a manager. One of the most famous incidents was when he was managing the Mets and was ejected from a game. He went to the club house and got a fake mustache and glasses and returned to the dugout.

In 2012, Valentine was charged with leading the Boston Red Sox. It was in this position where Valentine experienced a large amount of disconnect among his players. He was very unpopular with several star players. It got so bad that players were said to have gone to ownership to complain. Of course, we all remember how the clubhouse disintegrated into the famous “chicken and beer” environment. Valentine was replaced by every Red Sox player’s favorite, John Ferrell.

Valentine is no stranger to the public or media. He is known to be forceful with his opinions and to try unusual tactics to get his point across. According to Baseball-Reference.com, Valentine is a restaurant operator. On top of that, in 2012, he was named Director of Public Safety for the city of Stamford, Connecticut. True to form, Valentine took the (honorary) job very seriously and added his own flair by directing traffic one early morning. A quick Wikipedia search tells us that he has also served as an analyst for ESPN Sunday Night Baseball. In Feb, 2013, CBSSports.com brought Valentine on board to represent its Fantasy Sports business. He was given the task of running a marketing campaign that involved fans getting the chance to fire him again.

The above experience has led the Toronto Blue Jays to reach out to Robert Valentine. They’ve enlisted his services with an eye to reaching a wider audience. Their goal is to expand the Blue Jays brand beyond the city of Toronto and small pockets of Canada. Valentine would bring the personality and “know how” required to help the Blue Jays increase their brand recognition in the United States. Details of the agreement are not clear at this time.

If the Blue Jays are willing to look past the silly antics of Valentine’s past and tap into his ability to draw attention, this just may be a match made in heaven.

Or, this could just be a solid APRIL FOOL’S joke….