The Toronto Blue Jays shocked many in the MLB world on Wednesday as they fired manager Charlie Montoyo after 88 games played in the season. Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins elected to name bench coach John Schneider as interim manager for the remainder of the campaign, while Casey Candaele was appointed as the team’s newest bench coach.

The news came as a surprise to many Blue Jays players on the team. For Vladimir Guerrero Jr., he was quite “emotional” when he first heard that the Blue Jays decided to part ways with Montoyo.

“Very, very emotional for me,” Guerrero said on Wednesday. “Especially with a guy like Charlie. But you've still got a job to do and I just prepared myself for the game and to go out there and continue to help the team win.

“We know that things could be better, things have to be better. We understand what we all can do. It hasn't really shown yet. That's the frustrating part. But at the end of the day, we just have to show up, play hard and whatever happens, happens.”

When the Los Angeles Angels and Philadelphia Phillies opted to fire their respective managers earlier in the season, numerous players on both teams well understood why such a decision had to be made. Even as Toronto held a 46-42 record at the time it parted ways with Montoyo, shortstop Bo Bichette does not disagree with the call made by the front office.

“I think we needed something to send us in the right direction,” Bichette said. “This is not my area to worry about. We'll come to the field ready to play as hard as we can. The front office has made their decision on what they thought was necessary. I don't disagree.”

Not much went Montoyo’s way in his final season as Blue Jays manager, from the injuries that piled up throughout the year to the lowly 20-24 record on the road.

For now, the Blue Jays are set to embark on their final series before the All-Star break, as they will host the Kansas City Royals for a four-game set beginning on Thursday.