Overview
- Tampa Bay secured the AL East by beating the Yankees 6-1 in New York on Tuesday, a result that locked the Rays into the AL Division Series.
- The loss relegated the Yankees to the best-of-three Wild Card round starting Sept. 29 and cost New York home-field advantage for the early rounds of the postseason.
- Players and managers on both teams acknowledged the rivalry and potential October rematch, with Jazz Chisholm Jr. calling watching the celebration “kind of sucks” and Kevin Cash noting the club’s focus on winning.
- Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the club is preparing as if Aaron Judge will not play in the Wild Card series, though the team has not completely ruled out a late return.
- The clinch reinforced Tampa Bay’s model of low payroll, strong pitching and athletic depth, with starter Drew Rasmussen singled out for a key outing that helped secure the division.