Toronto Blue Jays skipper John Schneider seemingly blamed Kazuma Okamoto for the team’s botched play against the Houston Astros on Wednesday. Although the error was officially charged to relief pitcher Jeff Hoffman, the Blue Jays skipper’s comments suggested the third baseman was at fault.
The incident happened at the top of the eighth inning at Rogers Centre. Yainer Diaz was at the plate on a 0-1 count while Hoffman was the pitcher. The score was tied 1-1, and the Astros had left fielder Joey Loperfido at third base.
Hoffman attempted a set pick-off play, throwing the ball at Okamoto, whose focus was on home plate, appearing unaware of the play. As such, the relief pitcher’s throw sailed into left field and allowed Loperfido to take the lead for the Astros.
After the game, Schneider said that miscommunication led to the botched attempt. He said Okamoto expected the throw to come from catcher Alejandro Kirk.
“I think with Kaz not covering, it kind of threw Jeff off a little bit. So just miscommunication with Kaz, really,” Schneider said, per Sportsnet CA’s Ben Nicholson-Smith.
The majority of fans didn’t like Schneider’s comments about Okamoto, who joined the Blue Jays on a four-year, $60 million contract in January and has been a bright spot in the lineup.
Meanwhile, Jeff Hoffman’s performance in 2026 has been far from great. As such, many fans felt Schneider tried to protect Hoffman by blaming Okamoto.
Fans on X let their feelings be known about Schneider’s comments.
Blue Jays Skipper Comments on Game 3 Loss
The Toronto Blue Jays suffered a 2-1 series defeat to the Houston Astros at Rogers Center on Wednesday. The Blue Jays opened the series with a 4-2 Game 1 win on Monday, but suffered a 9-7 defeat in Game 2 on Tuesday, followed by a 3-1 defeat in Game 3 on Wednesday.
The eighth inning in the series decider was the turning point of the game. Astros slugger Joey Loperfido reached third base on a triple and took a 2-1 lead in the game after a botched pick-off attempt from Jeff Hoffman. An RBI single from Jeremy Pena extended the lead for the Astros before Josh Hader closed the game with a successful ABS challenge.
“It’s frustrating when you feel like you leave a couple wins on the table against an American League team,” Blue Jays skipper John Schneider said after the game. “That’s baseball sometimes, but there’s definitely some areas where you can get a little bit tighter.”
The Blue Jays (39-41) are third in the American League East behind the New York Yankees (48-31) and the Tampa Bay Rays (44-33). A four-game home series against the Texas Rangers (38-42) is next for Toronto. The Rangers are coming off a 2-1 series loss to the Miami Marlins.
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