CLEVELAND: The American League Championship Series between the Indians and the Toronto Blue Jays will be a series among friends, even if some will be on the opposite side when Game 1 begins Friday at Progressive Field.
The Indians-Blue Jays matchup means Mark Shapiro — the former Indians president and current Blue Jays president — and Ross Atkins — the former Indians VP of player personnel and current Blue Jays general manager — will both be back in Cleveland, albeit it in a different shade of blue.
Shapiro was a major architect of the shaping of the Indians in the 2000s and headed the transition to the current front office, led by Chris Antonetti.