John Schneider suffered seven documented concussions during his own playing career, and the risk of an eighth led him to retire in the spring of 2008.
"I got to the point to where I was kind of diagnosing myself after foul balls," Schneider said Saturday. "I would look at the scoreboard, and if it was blurry, I would just walk off the field. I've been through the wringer of concussion protocol. I'd probably fail one right now, to be honest with you."
That history shapes what he calls a "soft spot" for players dealing with head injuries, like the one Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sustained in the sixth inning of Friday's 3-1 win over the Yankees.
A pair of defensive miscues led Guerrero into a slide at third base as shortstop George Lombard Jr. scrambled to cover the bag. An errant throw pulled the rookie into Guerrero's path, his knee and thigh clipping Guerrero in the head.
Guerrero got up and scored, grimacing after crossing the plate, and soon left the dugout with what Schneider described as a headache, one of the red-flag symptoms in MLB's SCAT5 concussion assessment tool. He was placed on the seven-day concussion injured list Saturday.
Why this stint marks a real departure for Guerrero
It's Guerrero's first injured list stint since a 2018 knee injury in Double-A, and Saturday marked his 10th missed game this season, compared to just 18 total missed games from 2020 through 2025.
"He felt a bit worse than he did Friday, which is to be expected after you go home and sleep," Schneider said following a 4-1 win over New York. "Hopefully it's a minimal stay. He's frustrated he's not out there, but you've got to be careful with this."
Schneider also noted how much worse the collision could have been.
"Vlad's lucky he's as sturdy as he is because he got squared up pretty good," Schneider said. "It was knee and thigh that hit him. If it was more knee, we're talking like, holy crap."
To cover the absence, Toronto selected outfielder Daz Cameron, designating Lazaro Estrada for assignment to clear a 40-man spot. Guerrero must now complete a Return to Play form and pass baseline cognitive testing before MLB's medical director approves his return.
In the meantime, Toronto plans to use Charles McAdoo and Kazuma Okamoto at first base, with Cameron adding a right-handed bat for matchups.
"Could have went a couple of different ways, but you want to call a guy up when he's doing well, too," Schneider said of Cameron, who's batting .368/.455/.586 in 25 games with Buffalo. "Mainly the left-handed component."
Do you think Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s concussion stint stays at the minimum seven days?
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