After reports began surfacing earlier in the week that John Gibbons’ days as manager of the Toronto Blue Jays may be numbered, general manager Ross Atkins remained tight-lipped regarding the future of the Jays’ bench boss when asked by Brian Hayes Wednesday afternoon on TSN 1050’s Overdrive.

“[Gibbons] and I every day talk about ways we can get better and I really have established a great deal of respect for him and have a great relationship and everything and all of our discussions are about our daily improvement and how to put the best foot forward for each game,” Atkins told Hayes. “As you know, we also now talk a lot more about our future and [Gibbons] is very much a part of those discussions as we think about how we can improve the organization.”

For his career, Gibbons has compiled a 771-761 record as manager in 10-plus seasons in two separate stretches with the Blue Jays. The 56-year-old was originally hired in 2004 and managed the team until being fired in 2008 and then was re-hired in 2013 by former general manager Alex Anthopolous.

In Gibbons’ second stint as manager with Toronto, the Blue Jays made two-straight playoff appearances in 2015 and 2016, including the team’s first post-season berth in 22 years after the Jays won the American League East pennant in 2015. But Toronto has struggled the past two seasons, currently sitting fourth in the AL East with a 51-61 record heading into Wednesday night’s game against the Boston Red Sox at Rogers Centre.

“I don’t know the best way to categorize our discussions, but the best thing I can tell you is he is a pleasure to work with and he is absolutely a part of all of our discussions for the future,” Atkins added. “Our commitment is to improvement and getting better every day and that goes for every employee here…our focus is on how we get better every day.

“This is a team, this is a collective, we’re not satisfied with our results, but we’re absolutely satisfied with John Gibbons’ process and his values,” Atkins concluded.