No one probably gets the energy of a fired-up crowd better than Blue Jays manager John Schneider. Just a few days ago, he called out Mariners fans for booing George Springer after he got hit in the knee by a pitch during Toronto’s 6-2 loss in Game 5 of the ALCS at T-Mobile Park. “I think the fans that were booing him should take a look in the mirror and understand what kind of player he is,” Schneider said at the time.

But things got interesting when a similar situation unfolded at home. During Shohei Ohtani’s at-bats at Rogers Center tonight, the crowd broke out into “we don’t need you” chants — a jab after the Jays missed out on signing him. Now, after Toronto went on to rout the Dodgers, Schneider shared his thoughts on the reaction from his own fans.

“I love energetic fan bases. It happens in different ways and shapes and forms at every stadium. We saw it just in the last series in Seattle. You know, kind of heard it, but you know, it’s tough to talk about a player like that, to be honest with you. You know, he’s special… I love that our fans are passionate about our team,”

The reason behind those chants aimed at Ohtani actually goes back a bit. Reportedly, after the 2023 season, he signed that massive 10-year, $700 million deal with the Dodgers. But before that, the Blue Jays were very much in the mix. Ohtani even visited Dunedin, the Jays’ spring training site, and the buzz was real.

Things got wild around December 8, 2023, when reports said Ohtani’s decision was “imminent.” Fans online started tracking private flights, and when a jet left the Anaheim area and headed toward Toronto, everyone thought it was happening. But then the next day, he announced he was joining the Dodgers. Just like that, it was over.

So it’s no surprise that Jays fans, still a bit heartbroken from that saga, had something to say when Ohtani returned to town. This year’s team has been on a roll, dominating opponents and taking down the Dodgers, too. So, the message from the crowd was loud and clear that Toronto’s moved on. They don’t need Ohtani anymore, and the fans are loving the team they’ve got.

A brief Ohtani show against the Blue Jays

Even though the Blue Jays completely dominated the Dodgers in Game 1, Ohtani’s fans likely didn’t walk away too disappointed. Why? Because Ohtani still delivered one of those trademark moments in the game.

Notably, with the Dodgers trailing 11-2 in the seventh inning, Ohtani sent a towering two-run homer soaring into the right-field seats off Braydon Fisher. It was his fourth home run in just two games. And it came just after belting three HRs and striking out 10 batters in the Dodgers’ Game 4 in the NLCS.

However, the night wasn’t flawless for Ohtani. Earlier in the game, he had a big opportunity to do damage when he stepped up with the bases loaded and two outs in the second inning. At that point, the Dodgers were leading 1-0 and had a chance to break things open. But Ohtani grounded out to end the inning…

From there, Toronto’s pitching staff locked in and did an excellent job keeping him from shifting the game’s momentum.

Still, no one’s writing off Ohtani after one game. The World Series has only just started, and if there’s any player who can turn a series around single-handedly, it’s him. As Blue Jays manager John Schneider put it after the win, “I’m glad that the home run he hit came when we had a little cushion.”

Schneider knows that kind of power can be dangerous in a tight game. Because let’s face it, the Jays won’t always have that cushion when Ohtani’s bat starts doing damage.