“Earned the Division,” Aaron Boone Tips Off His Hat to Rays After They Beat Yankees to AL East Title

Aaron Boone and the New York Yankees lost out on the AL East division title to the Tampa Bay Rays with a 6-1 loss in Game 2 of the doubleheader.

“Earned the Division,” Aaron Boone Tips Off His Hat to Rays After They Beat Yankees to AL East Title

Aaron Boone (Image via Imago)

The Tampa Bay Rays were crowned champions of the American League East division on Tuesday. Following a 6-1 win in the second game of the doubleheader against the New York Yankees, they clinched the division title and the No.1 seed. Following the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone tipped his hat to them.

After losing in the American League Wild Card Series in 2023 against the Texas Rangers, the Rays missed out on the playoffs in 2024 and 2025.

Given their performances in the last two seasons, many did not expect them to make a deep run this year. The Rays, however, have shocked everyone with their performances.

On Tuesday, they entered the Bronx hoping to win 1 of the 2 games in the doubleheader to officially clinch the division title. A 2-0 loss in the first game kept the slim chances of the Yankees alive.

In the second game, they got dominated by Drew Rasmussen. The right-handed pitcher picked up 11 strikeouts and carried a no-hitter bid in the 7th inning.

The Rays picked up a 6-1 win and improved their record to 96-61 while leaving the Bronx Bombers with a 90-67 record. This saw them clinch their 5th division title and their first since the 2021 season.

The Yankees will now play in the best-of-three American League Wild Card Series and will have the home-field advantage in this. Given the current playoff scenario, they would face their rivals, the Boston Red Sox. The winner of this series will face the Rays in the American League Division Series (ALDS).

While speaking about the defeat, Yankees skipper Aaron Boone expressed that he wants another shot at the Rays. He then praised the Rays for their performance and admitted that they deserved the title.

They’ve put together a fantastic regular season run that, so that’s theirs (AL East title) that they earned and hopefully we get another crack at them in the next couple weeks, but they’ve certainly earned this, the division.

Aaron Boone said regarding the Rays as per SNY

Last year, the Yankees did face the Red Sox in the Wild Card series. A dominant performance from Cam Schlittler in Game 3 saw them come from 1-0 down and advance through the ALDS, where they lost 3-1 to the Toronto Blue Jays.

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Aaron Boone says Yankees will be without Aaron Judge in the Wild Card Series

The New York Yankees will once again have to battle it out in the Wild Card Series. This time, they will have to do this without their captain Aaron Judge. On Tuesday, Aaron Boone claimed that they will be without Judge next week.

Aaron Boone and Aaron Judge
Aaron Boone and Aaron Judge (Image via Imago)

The 3-time American League MVP got injured once again last week. In the game against the Minnesota Twins, he suffered some tightness in his lower body.

MRI scans later revealed that he had suffered a calf strain and was placed on the 10-day injured list. This development came just a few days after he returned from a long absence following a rib fracture.

Boone told the reporters that Judge has a “moderate-grade” strain and they are not expecting him to be available in the Wild Card Series.

For the season, Judge has 18 home runs and 41 runs while batting with a .241 average. If the Yankees do advance from the Wild Card Series, there is still no confirmation that he could feature later.

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