Blue Jays fans go full conspiracy theory as another brutal call costs Toronto

The Toronto Blue Jays are just one game ahead of the New York Yankees in the American League East after losing at the hands of the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night. It's been a tough couple of weeks for Toronto, on one hand holding on for dear life in the division, and the other hoping to set themselves up for success in the long, arduous postseason road to come. The Blue Jays have won just five of their last 10 games, and after another brutal call went against them on Tuesday, fans of Canada's only MLB team think the fix is in, favoring big-market teams like Boston and New York.

In the bottom of the second inning against Boston, George Springer hit a screamer down the third-base line that, frankly, should have been called a fair ball. Springer and Jays manager John Schneider were rightly upset by the foul call, as the 36-year-old's liner would've scored at least two runs, if not more.

Instead, Doug Eddings made the wrong call, and the play wasn't reviewable via MLB rules. While ABS will solve some of baseball's problems ala bad umpiring, perhaps the league needs to go a step further in reviewing their challenge system to expand what can and cannot be reviewed. It certainly didn't help that Eddings backed up his horrible decision by calling Springer out on a questionable third strike.

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Blue Jays have a right to complain about bad umpires

Were this merely a one-off for Springer and Toronto, perhaps they could let is slide. However, it's been a bad couple of weeks for the Blue Jays and those who uphold MLB's on-field rulebook. Over the weekend, what looked to be a catch by outfielder Daulton Varsho was ruled a hit, with the replay review in New York instead claiming the ball hit the ground.

And earlier last week in a game against the Tampa Bay Rays, the Blue Jays were robbed of a home run in what sure looked like fan interference from the naked eye.

Needless to say, decisions like this happen throughout any team's season, and they start to pile up by September. In the Blue Jays case, the large number of calls against their best interest in a short period of time – all while they're trying to lock up the AL East – has led to some well-understood frustration from a fanbase hungry for a winner.

Blue Jays fans are full of conspiracy theories

The most common conspiracy from Jays fans is that since the league office and replay review system is based out of New York, MLB is clearly biased towards the Yankees. This, of course, doesn't have a ton of backing, but it is a fun storyline to entertain.

"Well because the review is in New York think about it hmm," one Jays fan said after Varsho's catch over the weekend was overturned. "Rigged for new york," another Jays supporter said bluntly. You're sensing a theme here, no?

Schneider didn't hold his thoughts back after Springer's double turned foul ball and subsequent strikeout postgame, speaking with the media after the third blown call against his team in a week.

"It was a fair ball down the third-base line," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said postgame, according to Sportsnet. "I thought it was fair. People in our replay room thought it was fair, and it's not a reviewable play. It sucks. It's two runs there and it's a 2-1 game."

One Blue Jays supporter summed up the mood of the fanbase quite well: "We should be scoring more as a team, but there have now been 4 very questionable calls, two by NY review that are sure making it seem they (MLB) want those Yankees to win the division. Watch them all and tell me i’m wrong."

Well, now you've watched them. Despite some questionable decisions against them, the Blue Jays should make the postseason and have ample opportunity to prove themselves. Usually fans wait until October to put on their tin foil hats.