San Diego Padres hire Andy Green as manager

When his Arizona Diamondbacks played a series in San Diego in mid-April, Andy Green saw how excited the fans were about the new-look Padres.

“It was hopping. We lost two of three. The energy was palpable,” Green said.

“It didn’t turn out that way.”

Not even close.

Hired Thursday as the Padres’ new manager, it’s Green’s job to figure out how to get a talented roster to compete instead of collapse.

Green, who had been third base coach of the NL West rival Diamondbacks, takes over a team that underachieved despite General Manager A.J. Preller’s aggressive off-season roster makeover. The Padres finished 74-88 and fourth in the NL West, 18 games behind the division champion Dodgers.

San Diego has had five straight losing seasons and has missed the playoffs for nine straight years.

The hiring of Green gives Preller the chance to continue to remake the team. Preller, hired in August 2014, fired manager Bud Black on June 15, when the team was 32-33. He replaced Black with triple-A manager Pat Murphy, who had no big league experience.

The Padres were 42-54 under Murphy and he was fired the day after the season ended.

Anthopoulos leaves Blue Jays

Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos left the team Thursday, the day he earned executive of the year honors from his peers and rejected an offer to remain in what might have been a diminished role under its new president.

The Blue Jays made the announcement just four days before former Cleveland Indians president Mark Shapiro takes over as Toronto president.

The Sporting News announced Anthopoulos was chosen executive of the year on Thursday. He acquired MVP candidate Josh Donaldson in the offseason and traded for David Price and Troy Tulowitzki before the deadline to help Toronto reach its first playoff spot since 1993.

Etc.

Right fielder Ryan Braun is recovering after undergoing a surgical procedure on his back but is expected to be at full strength when the Milwaukee Brewers begin spring training in February. ... The Colorado Rockies have a $9-million mutual option on Justin Morneau and bought out the first baseman for $750,000.