January 10, 2024

By Tyson Shushkewich

Canadian Baseball Network

Davis Schneider burst on to the big league scene with the Toronto Blue Jays last season.

What transpired was a record-setting debut where Schneider collected nine hits, two home runs, and five RBIs through a weekend series in Boston. He became the first player in big league history to collect nine hits and two homers in their first three games.

After such a special debut, the Schneider family has graciously donated the uniform (jersey, pants, hat, belt, and cleats) from that weekend to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame (CBHFM) and it will now be on display for all to see in St. Marys, Ont.

“I definitely have a lot of gratitude that they (CBHFM) were even interested,” said Davis Schneider, speaking to the Canadian Baseball Network. “Opportunities such as this don’t come around often and I am incredibly grateful to have my jersey in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame.”

“Having his uniform in the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame is surreal,” added Davis’s father, Steve. “We are so honoured to have his uniform there, in the same place as Joe Carter’s and all the other Canadian legends. Davis reached his dream. As parents, we, and his sisters, couldn’t be prouder.”

For it’s part, the Canadian ball hall is excited to have Schneider’s uniform to share with visitors.

"We are thrilled to add Davis Schneider's uniform from his record-breaking first weekend with the Blue Jays to our collection,” said Jeremy Diamond, the chair of the Hall’s board of directors. “Like many Canadian baseball fans, we won't soon forget Davis hitting a home run in his first at bat and then becoming the first player in major league history to register nine hits and two home runs in their first three major league games in that series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park in early August."

Schneider’s journey to the big leagues started back in 2017 when the Blue Jays drafted the middle infielder in the 28th round out of Eastern High School in Voorhees, N.J.

He spent the next six years grinding away in the Blue Jays’ farm system, navigating through the ups and downs of being a professional baseball player. There were high points and low points as he worked his way up the minor league ladder, and even at the worst of times, Schneider continued to keep working towards his dream.

“It is incredibly humbling,” said Schneider, speaking about his early playing days with the Jays organization. “Once you get drafted, you have this idea of immediately becoming a top prospect and making the big leagues within a few years but that rarely happens for so many players. After my first year, I realized that I had to continue grinding and wait for my opportunities and take advantage of the moments when they came. In 2022, I really felt like I broke out in a big way and continued that into last season.”

Fast forward to 2023 and Schneider was swinging well in triple-A, surpassing the 20-home run mark in a single season for the first time in his career while owning a .553 SLG and a .969 OPS as the campaign turned over into August.

With the trade deadline in the rearview mirror and the Blue Jays dropping three of four against the Baltimore Orioles and sitting 7.5 games back in the division, the club decided to call up Schneider to bring a jolt to the batting order with playoff hopes still in play but fading quickly.

Schneider, who was in Lehigh Valley with the Bisons at the time, was taken back once he heard he was heading to the majors.

“I was pretty shocked when I first heard the news,” explained Schneider. “My manager Casey Candaele pulled me into the office and he was hiding the news well because I really didn’t see it coming. I wasn’t on the 40-man roster at the time and I thought it might be more difficult to get an opportunity to play with Toronto this year. Once he told me the news, I had to move quickly and get to the airport to join the team, phoning my family and friends along the way.”

It was a big moment for the Schneider family, one that resulted in the group needing to make a detour from their original plan to see their son play.

“My wife’s sister was in from Arizona visiting family,” Schneider’s father, Steve, recalled. “We were leaving a little early to beat the traffic to go see him play in Lehigh, as it can be anywhere from a 90- to 120-minute ride from our house in Berlin to the game depending on Philadelphia traffic. We got in the car and we were in the garage when Davis called. I knew he got called up. Bo was hurt, and even though they just traded for (Paul) DeJong, Davis had like 21 homers in Buffalo so I figured they would give him some at-bats. He told me, ‘I got called up to the big leagues.’ then I handed the phone to his mom. She cried, and then his aunt cried. Davis’s sister Madeline came down from NYC on the train and his other older sister Olivia also came with us to Boston.”

Schneider made his official debut on Aug. 4 at Fenway Park. A night game, the 24-year-old suited up at second base and slotted into the seventh spot in the lineup, right behind Matt Chapman and just in front of DeJong, who was taking Bichette’s spot on the field.

With one out in the second inning, Schneider stepped to the plate with a boisterous group of supporters in attendance, standing on the same field as some of the greatest to ever play the game, officially joining the ranks of becoming a Major League player.

He was tasked with facing veteran left-hander James Paxton (Ladner, BC), who was pitching well and owned a 3.34 ERA through 13 starts at the time.

Paxton started off the outing on a sour note, with the southpaw giving up two solo home runs to Whit Merrifield and Vladimir Guerrero (Montreal, Que.) the inning prior, giving the Jays a quick 2-0 lead for starter Alek Manoah.

Schneider had faced Paxton twice earlier in the season when the veteran was rehabbing in the minors with the Worcester Red Sox and Paxton had a slight upper hand going into the game, holding the new Jays batter 0-for-2 with one walk through their previous encounters.

“He had my number heading into the game, that’s for sure,” Schneider joked.

Standing in the right side of the batter’s box, Schneider looked at an off-speed pitch outside to get ahead 1-0 in the count. Paxton countered with a low fastball, an offering that Schneider got contact on but fouled off to the right side of first base into the stands. With the count all tied up at 1-1, Paxton countered with another off-speed pitch but hung it in the middle of the zone and Schneider capitalized on the mistake, sending the ball on a quick ride over the Green Monster for his first big league hit and his first big league home run. With all his teammates standing at the top step of the dugout, Schneider rounded the bases and couldn’t help but smile as he was greeted in the dugout with a cheer and high fives all around.

“I went to the plate wanting to get a hit or at least put forward a good at-bat, continue to keep the inning going,” said Schneider, speaking about his first big league at-bat. “I was nervous and I remember there being a lot of stuff going on in the background but I was focused on producing a hit. Lucky for me, Paxton hung a pitch and I was able to connect.”

The fun didn’t stop there for Schneider, as he continued to dominate in the batter’s box all weekend long. He collected another hit before the night was over and then added seven more over the next two games, helping the club sweep their division rival at a pivotal point of the season.

In Saturday’s contest, the 5-foot-9 slugger collected three hits in four at-bats with one walk and one run, one of which came off Nick Pivetta (Victoria, BC). The following day, Schneider put forward his best day of the weekend, going 4-for-5 while being bumped up into the third spot in the lineup, right behind Brandon Belt and just in front of George Springer. In the fourth inning, Schneider went to the plate facing reliever Chris Murphy and punished a first-pitch middle fastball, sending the offering right over the Green Monster and straight onto Lansdowne Street to score both him and Merrifield, with the Jays eventually thumping the Red Sox by a score of 13-1.

Speaking about the second home run, Schneider’s father discussed the meaning behind why it was so special for the family.

“His older brother, Steven, passed away on 11/5/2020. Steven’s favourite team was the Red Sox and his birthday was April 25th. Davis’s second home run at Fenway went 425 feet to match his brother’s birthday. The weekend could not have been better,” explained the elder Schneider.

The day only got better for Schneider, as he entered the record books with his fifth at-bat in the game. A line-drive single to centre field was his ninth hit through 13 at-bats, and combined with his two home runs, was a debut that no other player had ever achieved before.

Boston greats like Ted Williams, Jim Rice, or Carl Yastrzemski didn’t have as great of a debut compared to what Schneider accomplished that weekend, a trait that he carried out the rest of the year when he finished with a .276 average, eight home runs and 20 RBIs, authoring a 175 OPS+ through 116 at-bats to round out the year.

Entering the 2024 season, the middle infielder is in line for a more permanent role in the Blue Jays’ lineup with a couple of open spots up for grabs on the infield. A feel-good story of a player who worked his way through every hurdle and every stop in the minors to reach the MLB stage, becoming the first player from his high school to make the big leagues.

And now, the uniform from that historic debut will be on display for all who decide to make the trek down to St. Marys to visit the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. A connection between Berlin, NJ and Canadian baseball history now forever established.