BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Toronto Blue Jays’ triple-A affiliate will officially introduce its new manager this month.
The Buffalo Bisons said Tuesday they will hold a press conference with Ken Huckaby, their 21st manager in club history, on Jan. 17 at Sahlen Field. The Blue Jays had named Huckaby as the Bisons manager in November, replacing Bobby Meacham.
Huckaby is the fourth manager of the Bisons since the team became affiliated with the Blue Jays in 2013. He follows Marty Brown, Gary Allenson and Meacham, who was hired as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday after three seasons in Buffalo.
Huckaby, 48, has twice served as manager in his seven-year coaching career throughout the Blue Jays organization and holds a 149-125 managerial record.
He led the single-A Lansing Lugnuts to a 73-66 record in 2015 that included a first-half Eastern Division championship (42-28) and a berth in Midwest League Playoffs. The following season, Huckaby posted another winning record with the single-A Dunedin Blue Jays (76-59) as well as a second-half North Division championship and a spot in the Florida State League playoffs.
Huckaby has spent the last three seasons as Toronto’s minor league catching co-ordinator. He first joined the Blue Jays in 2013 as the hitting coach with the Gulf Coast League Blue Jays and served in the same role the following season with Lansing.
Huckaby was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 22nd round of the 1991 June amateur draft and made his major-league debut in 2001 with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
He spent parts of three seasons in the big leagues with Toronto (2002-03, 2005), and also appeared with Texas, Baltimore and Boston throughout his six-year MLB career.
Huckaby appeared in 161 major league games, 128 of them with the Blue Jays.
The Bisons begin their 2020 season on April 9.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 7, 2020.
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