Feeble offence leaves little room for error

Even on a day when John Schneider pulled every correct string, the Blue Jays found a way to lose. That’s how life goes when you’re managing one of Major League Baseball’s worst lineups.

- GREGOR CHISHOLM

Baltimore's Anthony Santander beats the tag from Davis Schneider for a double in the eighth inning.

Orioles 3

Blue Jays 2

Next: Friday vs. Rays

Schneider’s reputation has taken a beating in this market over the last year. No matter the topic — bullpen usage, the batting order, bunting — the Jays skipper is always taking the blame for something.

There will be some who point the finger at him following Wednesday’s crushing 3-2 loss to the Orioles too, but they shouldn’t. This is one late-inning collapse that he wasn’t responsible for. In fact, several shrewd moves were the reason the Jays even had a chance to steal a victory.

Schneider’s squad was three outs away from sending the Orioles to their third consecutive loss. Instead, a one-run win soon became a one-run loss after closer Jordan Romano served up a walk-off homer to Adley Rutschman in the bottom of the ninth.

The loss overshadowed what had been an expertly managed game with almost every decision working out in Schneider’s favour. Unfortunately, when the margin for error is non-existent, perfection is required and the Jays didn’t get that in the series finale.