Although the 2023 edition of spring training is just underway, it's already been an eventful one for Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider. That's because on Saturday, the skipper played the hero in a Dunedin, Fla., restaurant after he successfully administered the Heimlich maneuver to a woman who was choking.
Here are the details from Sportsnet.ca:
Speaking to Sportsnet's Hazel Mae and Shi Davidi, Schneider said he saw a woman at a restaurant in Dunedin, Fla., choking and struggling to breathe, with people around her not knowing what to do.
The 43-year-old Schneider, who'd learned the Heimlich Maneuver in school, then walked over to offer help.
It turns out Schneider definitely listened in school because he successfully performed the maneuver despite not being sure if he remembered how to do it, and saved the woman by dislodging a piece of shrimp.
Schneider, who was having lunch with his wife at the time, tells Keegan Matheson that he learned the Heimlich as a sixth-grader, and on Saturday received a free beer for his life-saving efforts.
Schneider is going into his first full season as Blue Jays manager. After taking over last season on an interim basis, he led the Jays to a 46-28 record despite playing in the tough American League East and guided them to the postseason. Afterward, the Jays removed his interim tag and signed him through the 2025 season with an option for 2026.
