John Schneider delivers blunt and honest quote on Blue Jays' Eric Lauer DFA

The Toronto Blue Jays are moving on without Eric Lauer. The left-hander who was one of the main reasons the Blue Jays were able to sustain a winning record throughout the summer just one year ago, has been Designated For Assignment. The move came on Monday (May 11) after Lauer's latest outing proved to be a disaster. Lauer came out of the bullpen in the fifth inning of the Blue Jays' 1-0 lead over the LA Angels and promptly gave up the lead, and then some.

Lauer pitched the remaining five innings of the game, giving up six earned runs on five hits, and two walks, while allowing three home runs. The Blue Jays lost their opportunity to sweep the Angels and get to within two games of the .500 mark and it would be the last straw for Lauer's current tenure with Toronto.

Manager John Schneider spoke to media on Monday and said the reason they DFA'd Lauer was based on results.

"Just results. Tough conversation because of what he did last year. I know it was kind of back and forth with him this year, bullpen and starting. Just felt like we needed to go in a different direction. That's it. Those conversations suck. Baseball's hard. We get it. Hopefully he can get back to the stuff being where it was last year," says Schneider.

Lauer needs a full reset in order to prove himself once again

Last year, Lauer almost came out of nowhere to help the Blue Jays on their World Series run. Lauer had previously pitched for the San Diego Padres and Milwaukee Brewers between 2018-2023 to mixed success. He left to play for the Kia Tigers of the KBO in 2024, before returning to North America and signing with the Blue Jays.

He was called up from Triple-A Buffalo at the end of April, and was used in a hybrid role until the middle of June. On June 11, he went 4.1 innings in a start against St. Louis in which the Blue Jays won 5-2. From there he made 12 consecutive starts up to the end of August, and moved back into the bullpen for the September pennant race. He also pitched 12.1 innings during the playoffs, including 4.2 innings in Game 3 of the World Series that went 18 innings.

Utilizing Lauer was like playing with house money for the Blue Jays. He was a valuable addition no matter what role he was used in, but once the offseason began, the problems started to arise. Lauer and the Blue Jays went to arbitration and Lauer was hoping to be paid a starters salary, but the arbitrator ruled in favour of the Blue Jays and he landed a one-year $4.4 million salary for 2026.

He had been vocal about wanting to be a starter, and when some injury issues started to pop up, he was given that chance out of the gate. Lauer looked like his old-self in his first start of the year, but the wheels fell off quickly. Some of that is due to a sickness that ravaged the clubhouse, but he just hasn't been able to bounce back and be anywhere near as effective as he was a year ago.

With the Blue Jays falling behind in the win-loss column in the AL East, a move and a message was necessary. The Blue Jays don't want to throw away this season and they need players who are going to contribute to the teams' success and Lauer wasn't doing that.

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