ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — We know the Tampa Bay Rays are heading to the playoffs.
We are also very confident the group will win the AL East, too.
After having a glass of champagne on Wednesday, Kevin Cash's squad is hoping to pop bottles in front of the hometown crowd this weekend against the Marlins.
Wednesday was an emotional day for many reasons.
In the 8th inning, the Blue Jays threw at Kevin Kiermaier. Despite Toronto denying any intentions after the game, Major League Baseball was not buying the excuses and handed pitcher Ryan Borucki a three-game suspension, while manager Charlie Montoyo got a one-game suspension.
All of this stems from Monday's game when Kiermaier was tagged out at the plate and picked up a card outlining Toronto's game plan against Tampa Bay hitters.
Kiermaier explained his side of the story after Monday's contest:
“We’re making this way too complex. I saw a few words on it, just knowing it wasn’t mine I didn’t look at it, still haven’t looked at it. Don’t even know what the heck is on it. A couple seconds after I realized it wasn’t ours and at that point, I’m not giving it back. I’m not going to walk to the other dugout or find another way. They can think whatever they want over there, they’re entitled to an opinion, I’m over it, though.”
While Kiermaier was over it and Cash talked with Montoyo the next day to clear the air and apologize, the Blue Jays were still ticked off.
So, long story short, Cardgate might be a storyline for future matchups between these two franchises.
As with every Friday, 10 Tampa Bay sports director Evan Closky joins the Locked on Rays podcast to talk about the week that was.
In this episode, the trio breakdown the Rays-Blue Jays feud, what the postseason rotation looks like and opinions about Shane Baz's Major League debut:
