John Schneider's new comments offer optimism for Blue Jays fans

There's no denying this year is a big one for Blue Jays' manager John Schneider. Not only is the Blue Jays manager entering the final year of his contract (he technically has a team option for 2026 but manager's very rarely enter a year on a one-year deal), but he's also coming off a year where his team underperformed by every metric.

But, according to his comments in a new interview with the Toronto Sun, Schneider seems ready to help lead Toronto's turnaround this season.

John Schneider's new comments offer hope for 2025

With the regular season nearly here, Schneider held a wide-ranging interview with the Toronto Sun's Rob Longley, where, most notably, he said the team was "pissed" with how last year ended.

“There is always a different vibe, every year,” Schneider told Longley. “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.

Calling last year a "down year" is a bit of an understatement. After making the playoffs in 2022 and '23, the Blue Jays took a massive step back in 2024, going 74-88. That lack of success has just made the seat hotter for Schneider and Toronto's front office.

“I think last year was that, and for a few different guys and us as a whole," Schneider told Longley. "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?"

And while the Blue Jays did plenty of winning in 2022 and 2023, it still wasn't all roses. In 2022 (the Schneider had the interim tag removed halfway through the season), the Blue Jays blew a 8-1 lead against the Mariners in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series.

A year later, Schneider pulled José Berríos after just three innings in what another game that ended Toronto's season.

And then there was last year's lost season.

According to Schneider, that failure is part of the reason why the team added so many veterans this offseason.

“The floor was raised because of our own guys’ expectations after the way things went last season,” Schneider told Longley. “And then having guys like Max (Scherzer), (Anthony Santander), (Andrés) Giménez and (Jeff) Hoffman come in … you add those personalities and you kind of see guys feeding off each other.”

Schneider will have his work cut out for him this year. While the Blue Jays added a lot of talent in the aforementioned players, they also have plenty of storylines that will cloud the team.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s contract talks aren't going anywhere. Bo Bichette will be working to get back to his former self. The rest of the division is still good.

But none of that seems to matter to anyone in the Blue Jays' clubhouse. And they could prove that to everyone in baseball by getting off to a hot start. But all it takes is one cold stretch for Schneider's seat to get even hotter.