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The Toronto Blue Jays, winners of the American League pennant last season, have struggled to start the new campaign, and that boiled over with their manager, John Schneider, on Tuesday night at the Rogers Centre.
Schneider was ejected during the Blue Jays’ game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, who defeated them in seven games during a thriller 2025 World Series.
Schneider took issue with a balk being called on his pitcher Kevin Gausman in the top of the fifth inning, when the Blue Jays were already down 2-0 in the game. The balk call allowed Hyeseong Kim to go from first to second base, and Schneider lost it.
With his face beat red, Schneider leapt out of the dugout and got right in the face of home plate umpire Dan Merzel, who had called the balk on Gausman. Merzel quickly tossed Schneider from the contest, but the veteran Blue Jays manager was going to get his money’s worth if he wasn’t allowed to return to the game.
Schneider was clearly livid, face-to-face with Merzel as he let him hear his frustration. The passionate argument went about 30 seconds before Schneider head back to the dugout and into the clubhouse.
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There are times where managers will get an ejection to pump up their players, especially if they’re in a lull or struggling like the Blue Jays have to open this season. It’s unknown if that was the play for Schneider, or he couldn’t contain himself after a play he deemed legal by his pitcher.
If motivation was the end goal, Toronto didn’t see it through, as they fell to Los Angeles, 4-1, to fall to 4-7 on the season. In fact, Alex Freeland brought home Kim when play resumed following the ejection with an RBI single.
A large part of the Blue Jays’ struggles can be blamed on the lack of depth, as key players are injured to start the season. Toronto also announced before Tuesday’s first pitch that starter Cody Ponce is likely out the rest of the year due to a torn ACL.
The Blue Jays are also missing catcher Alejandro Kirk, pitchers Jose Berrios and Trey Yesavage, and third baseman Addison Barger, among others. Anthony Santandar was also moved to the 60-day IL on April 5 due to a shoulder injury.
It doesn’t help that the Dodgers, enjoying early-season success, routed the Blue Jays on Monday night, 14-2.
“I don’t want the woe is me, you know what I mean. It’s what can we do now?” Schneider told reporters following Monday’s loss. “Right now, not just our depth is being tested, our creativity is being tested as a group. How are we going to cover this? What are we going to do? It’s not always perfect, but we take a lot of pride in that and players do, too.”
Schneider added that his players are in a “good frame of mind” despite some trouble early. But it’s a marathon, not a sprint, in a 162-game MLB season. The Blue Jays know this and they’ll have to keep pushing forward and getting creative, like Schneider said, to right the ship.
Perhaps the fiery ejection was one of those creative moments for the manager. We’ll see if it leads to any change moving forward.
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