Seemingly nothing went right for the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night. The current AL East leader got destroyed by a Kansas City Royals team that looks likely to miss out on the postseason, and it wasn't just some regular old destruction — it was a butt-whooping. The Blue Jays lost by 19 runs, 20-1, in a game that made the team with the best record in the AL look like little children squaring up against grown men.
Everything was getting away from the Blue Jays, and it was getting so frustrating that manager John Schneider couldn't help but express his disdain in ways that the umpires thought went over the line. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Schneider came out of the dugout to protest what he thought was a missed third-strike call after John Rave checked his swing with the barrel of the bat seemingly crossing the plane of the plate.
Schneider went straight to the third-base umpire to make his case, arguing that Rave did swing for what would have been the third out of the inning. The Blue Jays manager was seemingly having a fiery, yet somehow calm, conversation with the umpires before making his way back to the dugout. He was then reprimanded by the umpires and he was apparently tossed from the game, sending him to the locker room early.
Via Jomboy Media on X (formerly Twitter):
Blue Jays manager John Schneider gets tossed after arguing a check-swing call pic.twitter.com/VFP8w2Ayu9
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) September 20, 2025
While Friday night was nothing short of disastrous for the Blue Jays, things could be a lot worse for the AL East leader. While they did lose by 19 runs, this only counts as one loss. And with the New York Yankees' 4-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Friday, the Blue Jays kept their advantage over them in the standings at three games.
Blue Jays endure night to forget against the Royals

This defeat is not good for the Blue Jays' run differential, but in the end, one game is one game and they need not take this kind of loss too hard. It is a bit concerning, however, that this was Toronto's third defeat in a row, and with the AL East crown not yet locked up, they will need to get it together soon.
At the very least, the Blue Jays' magic number to clinch a playoff spot is at three games, and they are still in the driver's seat when it comes to earning a bye to the ALDS.