John in Toronto: The best moments from Gibbons' 2nd stint with Blue Jays

With recent reports indicating that John Gibbons' second tenure as manager of the Toronto Blue Jays will end this offseason, it's time to look back on the affable Texan's best moments during his most recent six-year stint.

5. Arguing Stroman's quick pitch

Gibbons has been ejected a lot - more than 50 times - so narrowing this down to one instance was pretty tricky. However, for a manager that always had his players' backs, this one seemed particularly memorable because ... he's blatantly right.

During an April 2017 matchup against the Los Angeles Angels, Kole Calhoun is in the batter's box, and Marcus Stroman delivers what should clearly be strike two right down the middle of the plate. Instead, not only is time called, but a balk is called with no runners on, so Calhoun is awarded a ball on a 3-1 count and given first base.

4. For all the Tulo haters

At the beginning of his first full season with the team, Troy Tulowitzki became a polarizing figure. He was beloved by those who knew what he was capable of during his time with the Colorado Rockies but despised by those who saw his .569 OPS to start 2016 as who he truly was.

Gibbons was quick to defend the star shortstop after Tulo had a great game against his old rival, the San Francisco Giants. He went 2-for-3 with a home run and a double in the May matchup, which had the Blue Jays manager telling the haters to "suck on that one."

3. Dunedin Dad

Gibbons' managerial style was on full display during a media scrum at the Blue Jays' spring training complex in Dunedin, Fla., prior to the 2017 season.

Instead of answering questions about the scheduling of Devon Travis' and Josh Donaldson's respective rehabs, he just called upon the players to do it for him. Spring is supposed to be laid back, but Gibbons has an extra gear when it comes to being mellow.

Three observations:

• Donaldson saying he doesn't like sharing the camera with Gibbons because he takes "a lot of the lens up."
• Donaldson's "welcome to the Blue Jays organization" rings a little different a year and a half later given the way things ended between him and the club.
• "Thanks, Dad."

2. The Gunslinger

Who says managers aren't allowed to get excited? Gibbons has a trademark way of showing his excitement, though, opting for twiddling finger guns from his belt or aiming an imaginary rifle at the plate. You do you, Gibby.

1. John in Toronto

Introduced as "John in Toronto" after a 7-1 win over the New York Yankees during May of last season, it didn't take long for Sportsnet 590 The Fan's Mike Wilner to identify the southern drawl on the other line.

Applauding the efforts of Marco Estrada and Luke Maile, scrounging for free tickets, and dogging the "same bozos every night" that call into the radio station; there's something very approachable and jovial about Gibbons - particularly when the team is doing well. So much so that "John in Toronto" or "John from the Bronx" seemed like perfectly reasonable ways to refer to a manager, so long as it was Gibbons.