Maybe if the Jays haven't made it to the playoffs in five or six years, he'll be coaching basketball.

Otherwise I have to think he was just pulling Neyer's leg. JP's a funny guy - he is well aware of the image the media (especially the Toronto media) has of him and is happy to tweak it every now and then. I'm sure now we'll get a column by Griffin or Elliott moaning about JP's threat to leave by 2008.

Dear JP,
I coached high school girls hoops for four years (two as an assistant) and I'll tell you what, if you think that's going to be a mental or physical break from your current executive office position ... HA!

P.S. the girls's game is all about consistent outside shooting and point guard play. This is the basketball equivalent of patience and strike zone judgment as opposed to the boys all trying to muscle and dunk. So it might not be much of a change in philosophy for you, either.

I guess he just thinks that he'll be content with two or three rings, and not 6 or 8 ;-)

http://www.canoe.ca/Slam021013/nba_tor1-sun.html
I coached high school girls hoops for four years (two as an assistant) and I'll tell you what, if you think that's going to be a mental or physical break from your current executive office position ... HA!

http://www.canoe.ca/Slam021013/nba_tor1-sun.html

JP coached a high school boys team in Mass. during the winter... while working for the A's.

damn, beat to the punch again! see above :)

The Neyer piece is a little light on content, but fun. In the Globe today, Larry Millson quotes Michael Lewis about the famous missing Ricciardi chapter in that book he's promoting.

"Every time Carlos [manager Tosca] came out, J.P. had very acute observations about the pitcher's state of mind," Lewis said this week during a visit to the SkyDome.

"Why it was so funny was that he was inside everybody's head. He was taking such pleasure in the fact that they were trying new things, that there was some experimentation going on.

"He has a very healthy relationship to his team, it seems. . . . They're his kids almost. It almost felt like watching a college team. In J.P.'s mind, these guys were fired up and you just don't get that in pro baseball.

"His idea of a team wasn't a cool, crisp professional operation. It was, 'We're scrappers.' It made it fun to watch.

"He's very, very good at getting inside the heads of his players, imagining what's going on there. That's what made it so funny."

As mentioned in the article linked above by "uh, Mick...," J.P. was instrumental in organizing an entire league for kids, in addition to his coaching. Just one more reason I admire the guy. He genuinely misses that part of his life, and it wouldn't surprise me if he does walk away from the front office at some point. The ubiquitous Lewis told The Score's Elliotte Friedman that he thought Ricciardi, who doesn't "need" the ego gratification of being in charge, would be happy returning to work for Beane someday.

Ricciardi: "Keith Law for Paul DePodesta."

Give me a break. This would be an awful trade.

Sure, DePodesta is a 'proven veteran' but he's a free agent after the year and if you offer him arbitration he's going to the team a lot of money. I'm not sure that's in the Jay's budget. Plus, given his age he's likely to be entering his decline phase now. Why overpay for declining production?

On the other hand, Law's still in his 2nd year and doesn't have any arbitration rights until after next season so he'll be cheap for the next couple years. Given the normal career track, Law will be entering his prime over the next 4 years which the Jays currently control. Why screw that up for someone for 2 months of work?

The Jays would be crazy to make this move.

see name