TORONTO – As the Toronto Blue Jays aimed to complete a stunning four-game sweep of the New York Yankees on Thursday, manager John Schneider couldn’t help but smile in response to criticism from Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay.
Earlier in the week, Kay made waves with a bold declaration on his ESPN New York radio show, where he dismissed the Jays as unworthy of their spot atop the AL East standings.
“The Blue Jays are not a first-place team, I’m sorry,” Kay said. “If you look at run differential, the Yankees’ run differential is plus-105. The Blue Jays, after a 12-5 win (on Canada Day), finally got to positive yesterday — they’re plus four.
“Do you realize they should be a .500 team because of the plus-4 run differential? And the Yankees should have at least four or five more wins with a plus-105 run differential. They’re not playing great baseball. I’m sorry, they’re not.”
Kay’s rant came just as the Yankees were reeling from a three-game losing streak, allowing the surging Blue Jays to catch up in the division race. Ahead of Thursday’s finale at Rogers Centre, Toronto had already taken three straight games from their AL East rivals and sat in a first-place tie with the Bronx Bombers.
Schneider’s Calm but Sharp Response
When asked about Kay’s comments before Thursday’s game, Schneider delivered his response with a dose of dry humor:
“Is Michael Kay here?” he said flatly, sitting at his desk in the Jays’ clubhouse.
Without naming Kay again, Schneider offered a calm defense of his team’s performance — and a subtle rejection of any metrics-over-everything mindset.
“There’s lots of ways to win. There’s not one recipe to win,” he said. “And I think that expected win-loss, yeah, there’s some truth to that. But it’s making a play when most other people wouldn’t. It’s taking an extra base when most others wouldn’t. It’s putting a ball in play when most others wouldn’t.
“We’re okay with that. That’s how we’re built. It may not be sexy, but I think it comes down to being able to do what you’re good at.”
Numbers vs. Grit: Two Different Stories
While Kay’s argument focused on run differential — the Yankees now sit at +103, tied for second-best in the American League — Schneider emphasized Toronto’s ability to win games in less obvious ways.
Indeed, despite a run differential of just +6, the Blue Jays have found success through clutch plays, smart base running, and disciplined at-bats. It’s not flashy, Schneider admits, but it’s effective.
And while Kay’s criticisms may have served as a morale boost for frustrated Yankees fans, they seem to have landed flat in the Blue Jays’ clubhouse, where results speak louder than analytics.
The clash between Schneider’s Blue Jays and Kay’s commentary underscores an age-old baseball debate: do stats always tell the full story? For now, Toronto’s answer is clear — just look at the scoreboard.