John Schneider bashes home plate umpire after missed calls in loss to Red Sox

There's been a decent amount that's gone right for the Blue Jays this year.

They're leading the American League East. Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s not going anywhere. George Springer's turning back the clock.

But that doesn't mean that everything's great every night.

On Thursday, the Blue Jays went for a series sweep against the Boston Red Sox, and, according to manager John Schneider, had to compete against more than just Boston's players.

It’s tough to battle nine hitters and an umpire," Schneider said after the loss. "I got all the respect in the world for him. But it wasn't a great day for him behind the plate.”

John Schneider bashes home plate umpire after missed calls in loss

Schneider took exception with the strike zone from home plate umpire Manny Gonzalez.

The Blue Jays took the lead in the seventh inning before giving it right back an inning later on two errors and a wild pitch, which helped set the stage for extra innings.

The Blue Jays took the lead in the tenth inning on a sacrifice fly from George Springer, but ended up kicking the game away in the bottom of the inning on a Jarren Duran single and game-winning groundout from Trevor Story on a ball that Andrés Giménez misplayed.

As pointed out by Sportsnet, Gonzalez's strike zone was a bit all over the place, though he did consistent call the inside strike more frequently for both teams.

Boston's comeback came with Nick Sandlin on the mound, who was thrust into action while Jeff Hoffman was out after throwing two inning the day prior.

The inning started with Tyler Heineman throwing out Duran on a stole base attempt, but Rafael Devers followed that up with a single before Sandlin hit Alex Bregman and Triston Casas with pitches.

Part of Scheinder's frustration can likely be drawn for the Blue Jays' bullpen blowing what was another great start from a Blue Jay after Chris Bassitt allowed one run over 5 2/3. The Blue Jays starters have a 2.48 ERA (the second-best mark in baseball), while the bullpen has a 4.47 ERA.

The Blue Jays' bullpen is better than it was last year, but it's clear they still need some work to do. But, as Schneider said, there isn't much they can do if they have to fight against the umpires too.