MLB WORLD SERIES: DODGERS VS BLUE JAYS

October 28, 2025

John Schneider

Dodger Stadium

Toronto Blue Jays

Pregame 4 Press Conference

Q. How is everybody looking today? Are they well rested? Because my question is: After an 18-inning game, do you get -- an as athlete, do you get a second wind? Does it fuel you to work even harder when you have a game the same day?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: No, at this point, I don't think so. A few guys have played all 18. It's the World Series. Everyone is feeling good. They like these situations. We have responded well in these situations. In terms of second wind, no, man. It's just wake up, get ready to do it again.

Q. Quick follow-up. Everyone was going crazy about the fruit plate. Can you order a fruit plate to the dugout or did the fruit plate just show up?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Yeah, just Uber Eats. (Smiling.) Our nutritionist, Yuka, did a great job and great presentation. It was like a charcuterie fruit board. So you get nice things in the World Series.

Q. Shane Bieber's been with the team only since July, coming back from a serious injury. What's impressed you the most about him in the couple months you've been around him?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Just his professionalism and how he prepares. He's kind of a complete pitcher. He's won some awards, he's been in some big moment, he understands how the game works. He came down to me and Pete in the 11th and said, Let me know when you need me to get going.

So he's fit in extremely well here. Being around some other veteran pitchers has been cool to watch him kind of just dive right in with them. But I think this is -- again, man, this is why you acquire a guy like this and why we put him on this day. Not expecting an 18-inning game last night, but I think giving him the best shot to have a pretty good start.

Q. As George is trying to determine his readiness for today, what sort of stuff is he doing behind the scenes to get a sense of whether he's going to be good to go?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Just kind of getting himself moving and swinging. I think swinging will be the key to see kind of -- to determine if he's in there or not. But he was the first one here, a lot of treatment, a lot of work, and George is going to do everything he can to be ready.

Q. Just on the base running from last night, obviously it wasn't result that you guys would have wanted with Davis getting thrown out at the plate or IKF at third. At the same time Edman made some unbelievable throws. How do you assess those couple plays in particular?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: The Davis one, again, I think Carlos Febles is one of the best, if not the best, third base coaches in baseball and has been in this stage before. I thought it was a good send. You made Teo make a perfect throw, you made Edman make a perfect throw knowing that they're not pitching to Vlad. Vlad wasn't swinging there. So I'm not saying that Izzy couldn't have hit a three-run homer, but I thought it was a -- you know, the right move at that time, and they made two really good throws.

The other one with Izzy going first to third, that's kind of reaction. It's tough to hear Bud, if you can, you know, in that environment. And that's how we and Izzy run the bases. I think just in hindsight, if you pick Carlos up maybe a little bit earlier. But again, man, that was a hell of a play by Edman.

Q. Sticking with George, you said after the ALCS, you'll take him on one leg over a lot of people. Does the same apply to whatever it is that's bothering him? If George Springer is capable, you want him in the lineup?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Yeah, absolutely. He plays for moments like this. I think I told you guys yesterday, whenever this season's over, you guys will be surprised to see kind of how much he has grinded physically. So yeah, if he's good to go in any way, shape, or form, I want George in from.

Q. I know you said you have two lineups. In the one where George is not playing, is Bo Bichette your DH or is he still playing second?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Yeah, Bo will DH if George does not.

Q. What did the scan show on George?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: That he's hour to hour and day to day.

Q. What is the exact strain? Is it oblique or something else?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: No, it just said hour to hour.

Q. And is Yesavage your Game 5 starter?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Yeah, Trey's tomorrow.

Q. Looking back at last night, the way the game played out, would you be in favor of the ghost runner sticking around in the postseason games?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: I don't know. I would be in favor of the challenge system that's being implemented next year. Ghost runner? I don't know. I'm kind of a traditionalist when it comes to baseball. It's kind of unique because that's how you play for 162, and then that goes away. But with that, I think you got to structure your roster accordingly to try to handle some of those situations. Yeah, I don't know.

Q. Kind of speaking of the ghost runner in terms of baseball's willingness to change rules that we've had for a long time, if there were to -- put in a rule sometime and say you can only intentionally walk a guy one time a game, would that be something that you would agree with, disagree with, and what do you think about that idea?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: I haven't thought about it. Intentional walk's a part of the game. So, yeah, I haven't thought about that at all. I'm seeing it happen to some of my players quite a bit. Yeah, I don't think that rule's coming anytime soon. I don't think. I think if that rule comes in, they should also put in a rule that if you're a starting pitcher and you're done pitching, you can't hit.

Q. If it came down to you having to use a position player last night, who might have been the choice among the group that was still in the game?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: To pitch?

Q. Or would --

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Shane Bieber.

Q. And with, obviously, the ramifications of today, win or lose, how do you sort of balance the urgency of going to get Shane when maybe you think you might need to versus what all your guys are coming off from last night?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Everyone is available tonight except for Lauer, again, some in longer spurts than others. You kind of just read the situation. You're never expecting an 18-inning game, right? Postseason, you can kind of look at it historically, there's a higher chance for some extra innings, but not 18, because of the no ghost runner and things like that.

But I'm going to trust Shane as much as we can and give him every chance to really go out and execute.

Q. Was there any possibility that Trey could have come into the game last night?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: After Shane, yeah.

Q. Two for you: You mentioned that the use of the intentional walk could be in play with Shohei moving forward. You wouldn't do that in the first inning, would you?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Haven't decided yet.

Q. So it's possible. Next question, you mentioned in the last couple days how part of the Blue Jays way is using the whole roster. But in doing that like last night you did take out some of your better hitters. What's that balance like, obviously trying to score runs in the moment, but understanding you could get a lot more at-bats for those guys?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: Yeah, it's a tough balance. It's how we played all year. It's a little bit different now with some guys feeling physically how they're feeling. Didn't expect George to be out of the lineup, obviously. But I think I've said this so many times: I trust every guy on the roster. Sometimes it's not George or Vlad getting the big hit or hitting the big homer. Sometimes it's a role player, sometimes it's a bunt, sometimes it's a play. So definitely didn't think about some of those guys getting four at-bats yesterday, for sure. But I think that's kind of how we've played all year. When you have a lead at a certain point of the game you try to make some marginal upgrades where you can.

Q. With Trey, you knew this was going to happen obviously when you started him in Game 1, but it will be his first road start in the playoffs. Was it sort of intentional, at least early on, to keep him at home, and not pitch in New York, I don't even know if Seattle came into it. But is it something that you've sort of protected him from, and is there something you've seen that says, okay, let's go on the road?

JOHN SCHNEIDER: I think with each passing day he's here he gets more comfortable. We did that a little bit intentionally in the New York series. But it's kind of how it's lined up with rest and performance. You know, knowing that he was going to be on normal rest for Game 1, be on normal rest again for tomorrow. I think kind of having his feet on the ground here for a couple days was important, and kind of seeing the environment and feeling it a little bit. But have no reservations about him pitching on the road. He's going to pitch on the road a lot over the course of his career, so didn't really come into play with this one.