TORONTO — Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro declined to comment on contract extension talks Tuesday but said he wants to remain with the club and that team ownership has been "reciprocal in that desire."
Shapiro, who also serves as the team's chief executive officer, is in the final year of his contract.
"When I think about alternatives, I've never been a grass is greener guy," he said in a pre-game availability. "Twenty-four years in one place in Cleveland and 10 years here now.
"So it's the appreciation for what I have and the people that I get to work with every day, the city that I work in and the country that I live in, those things are drivers for me to remain here."
Shapiro, 58, joined the club in 2015 and signed a five-year extension in January 2021.
He took questions for about 20 minutes in a rare in-season media session before the Blue Jays' evening game against the Chicago Cubs. Shapiro was asked directly whether there had been discussions with Rogers Communications brass on a new deal.
"Sure, yeah, I mean I think (it's) not appropriate for me to comment beyond the fact that what I just said is I want to remain here," Shapiro said. "And I can also say that both (Rogers executive chair) Edward (Rogers) and (Rogers president/CEO) Tony (Staffieri) have been reciprocal in that desire."
It has been a worst-to-first campaign for Canada's lone Major League Baseball team. The Blue Jays finished last in the American League East division standings last season but have enjoyed a stellar season so far in 2025.
Toronto entered the three-game series opener against the Cubs with the best record in the AL at 69-50.
There has been plenty of change at the top of the city's other major sports franchises since Keith Pelley was named president and CEO of sports conglomerate Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment last year.
MLSE owns seven sports teams in the city — including the NHL's Maple Leafs and the NBA's Raptors — along with the Raptors esports franchise. Rogers became MLSE's majority owner last month after completing a $4.7-billion deal to acquire rival BCE Inc.'s 37.5-per cent stake.
Bill Manning, who was president of MLS club Toronto FC and the CFL's Argonauts, was let go about a year ago. Last May, the contract of Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan was not renewed and longtime Raptors president Masai Ujiri was dismissed a few weeks later.
It remains unclear if Rogers will eventually fold the Blue Jays into MLSE and what that might mean for the team's executive structure.
"I feel grateful every single day I get to pull into Rogers Centre, pull into (the team complex in) Dunedin (Florida)," Shapiro said. "I get to work in this role and again work with the people that I respect and care about so much.
"I think gratitude is more what I focus on and there's always the understanding that it comes to an end at some point."
Shapiro leads the Blue Jays on both the business and baseball sides of the operation. He has overseen several major projects in recent years, including significant renovations to the team's player development complex in Florida and at Rogers Centre.
The team has had mixed results on the field during his tenure.
In 2016, the Blue Jays reached the American League Championship Series in the first full year on the job for both Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins.
Toronto returned to the post-season in 2020 in the first of three wild-card round appearances over four years. The Blue Jays were swept each time.
Toronto can earn a bye to the division series if it remains in a top-two position in the AL standings. The Blue Jays' last World Series title came in 1993.
"I think we're capable of winning the last game played," Shapiro said. "Which is ultimately the goal."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 12, 2025.
Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press
