Stop blaming the umpires, says Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider
The Toronto Blue Jays capturing the AL East Division title isn’t looking anywhere near as probable as it did one week ago.
The Blue Jays have hit a rut late in the season, which continued on Wednesday night with a 7-1 loss at the hands of the Boston Red Sox. They’ve now lost six of their last seven games, a stretch in which they’ve been outscored 44-13.
“We’re not losing because of umpires. We’re losing because we’re not scoring enough runs,” Jays manager John Schneider said after Wednesday’s loss. “I don’t want to feed into the narrative that the umpires are screwing us because they’re not. We’re not scoring enough runs.”
These comments came just a day after the Blue Jays lost in controversial fashion to the Red Sox. A hit off the bat of George Springer that was going to score two runs on Tuesday night was called foul, despite cameras suggesting the ball was in play. After being rung up on a questionable strike three call, the very next pitch, Springer seemed to insinuate that the umpires are doing what they can to ensure the New York Yankees win the AL East.
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Whether you want to blame the umpires or not, the fact of the matter is that the Blue Jays’ once cozy lead in the AL East is now gone. The Yankees were able to defeat the Chicago White Sox once again on Wednesday, giving them the same 90-68 record as the Jays.
Current AL East Division standings
“It feels like the sky’s falling right now, and it’s f*cking not,” Schneider said. “We’ve got 90 wins, we’re in the playoffs, and if the season ended today, you’re going to win the AL East.”
As mentioned by Schneider, the Jays currently hold the top spot in the division through a tiebreaker, having beaten the Yankees 8-5 in their season series. The Yankees, however, have one more game remaining against the 58-100 White Sox, before ending their season with a three-game homestand against the 74-84 Baltimore Orioles.
The Jays, meanwhile, have one more game against the Red Sox before a three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays to close out their season. Though they are still technically in the driver’s seat, things are unravelling in quick fashion.
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