DUNEDIN, Fla. — John Schneider has just finished watching another of what at this point of spring has to be feeling like an endless string of pre-season games.
He watched Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit home runs in a Monday matinee against the Astros.
He watched his team score an 8-3 win to improve to 10-6, which has the Blue Jays atop the meaningless Grapefruit League standings.
And he’s about to finish another long and tedious spring training day, a moment trapped somewhere between the excitement of report day a month ago and the regular season opener two weeks and change down the road.
But fuelling him through the grind portion of baseball’s marathon exhibition season, Schneider sees plenty of positives from his team in the aftermath of the turmoil of 2024.
Perhaps more importantly — and realistically — as he embarks on his third full season as Jays manager, the 45-year-old New Jersey native acknowledges the lumps taken along the way and the challenges that await.
Even with the disclaimer almost every big league manager will sing the praises of his team in February and March, Schneider admits he senses an admirable resolve in the current group, after several players were — in the manager’s words — “pissed” with the way things unravelled last year.
“There is always a different vibe, every year,” Schneider said in an interview with the Toronto Sun outside his team’s clubhouse beyond the right-field corner at TD Ballpark. “And when you have a down year, I think you reflect on that a lot. Players, staff, everyone in the organization. It’s been a pretty clear message as to what we need to do and how we need to go about it.
“It’s been really nice to see the guys that were here and went through last year being not so great, remembering that we have won 91, 92 and 89 games (in seasons) before that and kind of having a little bit of a chip on their shoulder.”
Or maybe a big one given how last season bordered on embarrassment.
There isn’t a player on the roster who could have fathomed being a last-place team in 2024, even with the vagaries of baseball that can rapidly swing fortunes. In our interview, Schneider wasn’t spewing unbridled optimism, instead acknowledging the obvious: That the team has to be much better in many ways.
That said, he believes that there is a roadmap to success via the new mix in his clubhouse.
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“The floor was raised because of our own guys’ expectations after the way things went last season,” Schneider said. “And then having guys like Max (Scherzer), (Anthony Santander), (Andres) Gimenez and (Jeff) Hoffman come in … you add those personalities and you kind of see guys feeding off each other.”
The fresh blood was important, but so too was showing up to spring training with that sizeable chip on the collective shoulder and a resolve to reverse fortunes in a hurry.
“Right now the results are what they are,” said Schneider, who like any manager would rather win Grapefruit League games than lose them — because why not? — but knows that scores mean little. “Yes, it’s spring training. But I think the way that they are going about it, the way the guys are talking, has been really encouraging.”
Schneider sees those harbingers of positivity in different ways.
He sees veteran players not shying away from bus rides to Lakeland or Bradenton, once the domain for young guys still muscling their way towards regular big league duty.
He sees those same players lobbying for more spring at-bats, in inferred understanding of the need for the team to get off to a rousing start to immediately rinse the taste of a 74-88 last-place season.
And he sees it in players responding to peer persuasion rather than coaches imploring them to work harder.
The message to manifest that mindset was set in his initial address to the team back in February. At that point, Schneider made his belief clear that there was enough talent in the clubhouse to return to contention. He was adamant in his caution, however, stressing that just assuming that talent would be enough to turn the tide wouldn’t be accepted.
“Everyone is kind of pushing one another and holding each other accountable,” Schneider said. “That’s what you’re always striving for as a manager or coaching staff. And it’s been part of the message that I said on the first day of camp, and that was don’t assume anything.
“Don’t assume that it’s just going to turn around. Don’t assume that if you had a good year, you’re going to have another one. And don’t assume that you’re gonna just all of a sudden hit .300
“There’s ways to go about it, and we’ve been very intentional and deliberate with every workout. And it’s been good.”
With that has come an urgency and sharp focus on the things that need to be better. Schneider has tried to sum it up with an acronym — WIN, meaning a “What’s Important Now” approach to each day.
“With every team you hit a point in time where urgency is different with where guys are in their own careers, with where the last seasons have been and there’s always that wake-up call,” Schneider said.
“I think last year was that, and for a few different guys and us as a whole. So it’s hearing them talk about it and recognizing that it’s leaving your ego at the door and figuring out what are we going to do today to win?
“Everyone says that every year. We’ve said it in the past, but you can kind of feel a little bit of a different way they’re going about it this year.”
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Schneider, it’s important to note, has learned on the job since taking over from Charlie Montoyo, who was fired in the middle of the 2022 season. He’s taken his lumps for sure — from fans, yes, but as a competitor from his team’s shortcomings, particularly in two disastrous playoff flame outs.
And yes, he admits, there was more than a little disgruntlement in the clubhouse during a distressing 2024 season.
“There were a lot of guys who were pissed,” Schneider said. “Bo (Bichette) has verbalized that a little bit, as have others. It takes time to kind of reflect and say, ‘OK, this is what we’re really good at and what do we have to do differently to make it better, to make a change. There were a lot of guys who were pissed and it started before the year was over. So that made it kind of easier to transition into what we’re doing now.”
Schneider said that even with that disastrous and demoralizing September, there was an opportunity to salvage something from the carnage. And as much as there was pain in the day-to-day, it afforded an early opportunity to look forward rather than behind earlier than most teams.
“It takes time to kind of reflect and say, ‘OK, this is what we’re really good at, and what do we have to do differently to get to make it better, to make a change?’,” Schneider said. “So there was a lot of guys who were pissed, and I think that started earlier. That started before the year was over and it made it easier to kind of transition into that.”
So what does a turnaround look like for this team?
Schneider doesn’t dispute the notion that it will take much to go right for this iteration of the Jays to not just return to one with a winning record to contend in the AL East. But he has a road map at the ready for how it can happen.
“The things that need to go right?” Schneider said. “Health, but that’s every team. You’ve got to stay healthy and durable on the mound and with position players. And then you have to win in the margins of games. You have to run the bases a little better. You have to make plays defensively. You have to make pitches and you have to have good at-bats.
“What we’ve been stressing is it’s nine against one. It’s not one, or two, or three against one. It’s nine. So what is your role on a specific day, series, month and how are you going to help us win?”
Only time will tell what the level of buy-in is — though early success can often accelerate such mantras. And really, anything less than a desperate approach to 2025 would be underselling the importance of the season that awaits. With that in mind, though, Schneider sees an authenticity from a team that is suddenly more veteran in makeup than youthful.
“There’s always going to be bumps along the way, but I feel like this group has been together for a while and they understand you have to play together and you have to win together and you have to stay together when things are bad,” Schneider said.
“They’ve been awesome so far and it goes about as far and as long as the players are going to be committed. So again, it’s spring training, but there’s been a noticeable difference.”