There are two versions of John Schneider in the public imagination.

There’s Schneider the steady hand, the former minor-league catcher who grew up in the Blue Jays system, earned the trust of his clubhouse, and helped guide Toronto through one of its most competitive eras in decades.

And there’s Schneider the lightning rod, the manager whose bullpen decisions get dissected in real time, whose October track record raises uncomfortable questions, and whose calm demeanour is sometimes interpreted as passivity instead of poise.

Four years in, the truth sits somewhere between those two versions and it deserves a more honest, less emotional evaluation than the day-to-day cycle of wins, losses, and Twitter verdicts.