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Yankees coach reveals whom Blue Jays manager John Schneider called ‘fat boy’

Schneider made an inappropriate comment in the heat of the moment, but his target doesn't seem too bothered by it

Things got a little heated during Tuesday’s showdown between the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees, causing manager John Schneider to lose his temper in the top half of the third inning.

It began with Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker and Yankees third-base coach Luis Rojas arguing over Rojas' positioning around the coach’s box. The umpire crew eventually defused the situation.

But things took an odd turn when cameras caught Schneider yelling, “Shut up, shut up, fat boy, shut up,” to someone in the Yankees’ dugout. As it turns out, that person was assistant hitting coach Brad Wilkerson, according to The Athletic.

Wilkerson, however, didn’t realize that Schneider’s comments were directed at him until learning about it after the game. But he wasn’t too fazed by the body-shaming criticism.

“We try to stay in our dugout, some things happened over at third base, and we were trying to defend our guys,” Wilkerson said before Wednesday’s game. “I didn’t know anything about it until after the game, once I saw the write-up [in the New York Post], showing all over TV and all that kind of stuff that I guess it was pointed at me.”

Several members within the Yankees organization took exception, with one individual suggesting that Schneider should worry about his own physical appearance.

Wilkerson, listed at 6 feet, 200 pounds during his playing career, is in his first season with the Yankees after joining the organization in January. He previously worked as a baseball assistant at Jacksonville University. He played 85 games for the Blue Jays in 2008, the final season of his eight-year major-league career.

Schneider’s unprovoked comments were certainly surprising, especially considering that two of his players, Alek Manoah and Alejandro Kirk, have been the victims of body-shaming comments in the past. Manoah, in particular, has spoken out on social media a few times on the topic.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider had some choice words for a Yankees coach during a heated game Tuesday at Rogers Centre. (Getty Images)
Blue Jays manager John Schneider had some choice words for a Yankees coach during a heated game Tuesday at Rogers Centre. (Getty Images)

The series between the Yankees and Blue Jays has been filled with tension, triggered by New York slugger Aaron Judge suspiciously glancing to the side during an at-bat in the opener at Rogers Centre. While it has since been revealed that Jays reliever Jay Jackson was tipping his pitches during his outing — leading to Judge looking for signs on the pitches to come — the series has been fiery since. Yankees starter Domingo German was ejected in the third inning of Tuesday's contest after umpires found a foreign sticky substance on his hands. German received an automatic 10-game suspension for the violation.

The Yankees won the opening pair of games before Danny Jansen hit a walk-off home run in the 10th inning as the Blue Jays took the third matchup Wednesday. The rivals will take to the diamond to close out the four-game series on Thursday.