Blue Jays manager John Schneider defends mental error resulting in Alek Manoah's removal from game: "It was the right time to get him out"

John Schneider appeared to make a crucial mistake in yesterday's game by removing Alek Manoah after his second mound visit of the inning. MLB rules state that coaches can exit the dugout once and the second time, it must be to make a pitching change. On the second trip, Schneider was forced to go to the bullpen.

There was some confusion over the move and while it didn't directly lead to what ended up being a loss, it may not have helped. The Blue Jays lost as they continue to slide in the standings.

According to Clutch Points, Schneider admitted his mistake:

“I [screwed] up. I forgot Pete went out there, because we were talking about a lot of different stuff.”

He also said that he believes he made a big mistake, but that it was the right move either way:

"I f****d up. But I think, regardless of my f**k-up, it was the right time to get him out."

Manoah admitted that there was some confusion as well via MLB.com:

“There was just some silence. I had known Pete had come out there. When he started asking me if I wanted to stay in the game, I was like, ‘Well, maybe Pete didn’t come out here?’ I wasn’t sure. I told him I wanted to stay in and pleaded my case, but as he walked away, the umpire was like, ‘Hey, that was your second visit.’”

Manoah, who had had one of his more productive outings of the year, went 5.2 innings with six hits, two runs, a walk and six strikeouts.

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