Toronto ? Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos had interviewed 18 candidates for the manager’s job and still couldn’t make up his mind.

“I think I drove my wife crazy,” he said Monday.

In the end, Anthopoulos picked the person he’d felt a bond with right from the start: Boston Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell.

Farrell was chosen to succeed Cito Gaston, who retired after the season ended. It will be Farrell’s first managerial job.

“It’s one heck of a unique and exciting opportunity,” Farrell said.

Anthopoulos declined to reveal the length of Farrell’s contract or other terms of the agreement.

Anthopoulos said he felt “an immediate connection” with Farrell in their first interview, a wide-ranging, three-hour discussion.

In other baseball coaching news:

• pitching coach Dave Eiland has been fired by the New York Yankees, the first move in what should be a busy offseason in the Bronx after a disappointing loss in the American League championship series.

• Mark McGwire is coming back to the St. Louis Cardinals. The team said Monday that McGwire has agreed to a one-year deal after making his debut as the Cardinals hitting coach last season. Terms were not disclosed.