Blue Jays manager John Schneider on team struggles: ‘Enough is enough’
Toronto is slumping hard right now, and the squad needs to find answers before things get out of hand.
Things are not going well for the Toronto Blue Jays at the moment, to put it lightly, and no one is feeling the pressure more than manager John Schneider.
Speaking to reporters following the Jays’ 8-3 loss in extra innings to the Baltimore Orioles (capping off a series sweep) on Sunday, Schneider sounded the alarm bells for his floundering ball club.
“We just need to get hits when we need to,” said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. “We have tons of chances and we’re just not really coming through with the double plays from George [Springer] and [Kevin] Kiermaier today.
“It’s kind of at the point where enough is enough. You’re waiting for it to turn, and it will — not ‘I think it will,’ but ‘I know it will’ — and in order to get there, the guys are going to have to continue to work their asses off.”
The Jays are coming off a homestand in which they went 4-6, albeit with three of those wins coming in a series sweep of the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves. Toronto would go on to lose three out of four to the New York Yankees, then suffer a three-game sweep at the hands of the Orioles.
Kevin Gausman threw 115 pitches in a strong outing for the Jays on Sunday before the game got out of reach in extra innings following another poor relief effort by Toronto’s bullpen. Additionally, the Jays went an astounding 6-for-63 with runners in scoring position over the last six games as the offence has all but dried up.
Schneider has found himself under a glaring spotlight after a mound visit gaffe on Saturday forced him to take starter Alek Manoah — who could use every ounce of confidence at the moment — off the mound.
Next up, the Blue Jays travel to Tampa to face the Rays — the best team in the majors this season — for a four-game series at Tropicana Field before moving on to face the Twins in Minnesota. Now sitting in last place in an uber-competitive AL East, the Blue Jays have to find answers, and fast.