Blue Jays end pursuit of Orioles' Dan Duquette

The Toronto Blue Jays have decided to put an end to their pursuit of Baltimore Orioles general manager Dan Duquette, according to Sportsnet.ca's Shi Davidi, citing a refusal on Toronto's part to meet Baltimore's compensation demands. The Blue Jays had been interested in luring away Duquette to become the club's president, replacing incumbent Paul Beeston, who may or may not be around after next season.

Per Davidi, Baltimore was seeking a package of three top prospects in return for Duquette. Among the Orioles' demands was highly-regarded right-hander Jeff Hoffman, the ninth overall pick in last June's draft who is currently recovering from Tommy John surgery, but provides tremendous upside. Baltimore was also believed to be seeking catcher Max Pentecost, the 11th overall pick in the 2014 draft, and third baseman Mitch Nay, a first rounder in 2012. Meanwhile, the Blue Jays were not willing to part with much, pointing to past precedents (such as the Cubs' acquiring of Theo Epstein from the Red Sox for right-hander Chris Carpenter) to aid in determining a package.

While reports have indicated that Duquette did have interest in taking the Blue Jays' job, both Davidi and MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko report that a deal was never close between the two sides. Orioles' owner Peter Angelos has also been publicly against giving Duquette, who has four years remaining on his contract, permission to talk with the Jays. It still remains to be seen whether Angelos will file tampering charges against the Jays for their handling of the situation.

The Blue Jays' pursuit of a replacement for Beeston, who has been with the organization for 33 of the past 38 years,  has been a puzzling one. Toronto has also shown interest in White Sox president Kenny Williams and Twins GM Terry Ryan. Details on their failed pursuit of Williams can be found here, via Bob Elliot of the Toronto Sun.