Matthew Elmslie, an astute Jays fan and frequent visitor to this site, takes a thoughtful look back at the Gord Ash era in his latest column at Blue Jay Way. This isn't entirely about the ex-GM; it's an entertaining recap of the highlights and lowlights, on and off the field, during his tenure. There are many other great lines I could have quoted, but this summary of Ash's weaknesses had me nodding in agreement:
Gord Ash does not understand certain realities about how baseball games are won and lost. He doesn’t understand the importance to an offense of plate discipline. He doesn’t understand how players’ talents decline with age. He doesn’t understand how talent is distributed among ballplayers. He hasn’t shown any special ability to identify real prospects. And he doesn’t understand that rebuilding has different stages, and that the stages can’t be skipped over.
I had given up on the Blue Jays ever returning to Gillick-era glory under the man Elmslie calls "out of his depth," only to have my optimism rekindled when Paul Godfrey made his best decision as team president. Though there's been a positive, exciting change in direction over the past two years, it's too soon to put the Ricciardi plan in a similar box -- I hope Matt doesn't write that piece for quite some time.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20031211014840999