Amid Farrell Rumors, Blue Jays Change Team Policy

BOSTON (CBS)  - With rumors swirling that current Toronto manager John Farrell was on the top of the Red Sox managerial wish-list, the Blue Jays have changed things up a bit.

"Due to the distraction caused by media speculation regarding our employee permission policy, the Toronto Blue Jays have amended their policy and will not grant permission for lateral moves," Blue Jays president Paul Beeston and general manager Alex Anthopoulos said in a joint statement Tuesday.

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Toronto originally had a team policy that allowed employees to leave for a similar position with another team. Anthopoulos made comments over the weekend saying the Jays would not stand in the way if an employee had a chance to better their opportunities.

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The rule change will likely squash any chance of Farrell returning to Boston, where he served as pitching coach from 2007-10 under former manager Terry Francona.