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The Toronto Blue Jays were the kings of the American League East last season. They won the division, defeated the New York Yankees in the ALDS, and advanced to the World Series after defeating the Seattle Mariners.
According to many betting sites, the Yankees are the favorites to win the AL East, despite having pretty much the same roster from last season. The Blue Jays defeated the Yankees in four games in the division series last October, and it wasn’t even really a particularly close of a series. However, now in the wake of last year’s playoffs, which Blue Jays fans would like to erase from their memory in some respect, ex-Blue Jays infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa recently took a slight jab at the Yankees in a recent statement.
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What Did Isiah Kiner-Falefa Say?
Isiah Kiner-Falefa signed with the Boston Red Sox on a one-year, $6 million contract, which might be viewed as a bit of a reach, but he’s officially being announced to the Red Sox organization on Tuesday, and made a very interesting remark.
According to Tim Healey, a Red Sox beat writer for the Boston Globe,
“Isiah Kiner-Falefa said the Blue Jays were glad the Red Sox lost in the playoffs last year because they thought the Yankees were an easier matchup.”
Getty Isiah Kiner-Falefa
There’s a lot to dissect from this statement. In his first remarks with a new organization, Kiner-Falefa says he’s glad his new MLB organization is glad they lost to their biggest rivals?? Just so his former organization (which is still a Red Sox rival), the Blue Jays, could have an easier matchup.
So, the Yankees are catching a big stray in this statement, which Jays fans probably love, but Kiner-Falefa also wasn’t exactly the biggest catalyst for major production when he did get at-bats for Toronto.
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Were the Yankees a Better Matchup for Toronto Last Playoffs?
The Yankees defeated the Boston Red Sox in game three of the AL Wild Card round to advance to play Toronto.
Hindsight is always 20/20, so this is a very subjective question, considering the Red Sox and Blue Jays never matched up with each other last playoffs.
However, since Isiah Kiner-Falefa was in the Toronto locker room, he does have better insight, and the Blue Jays had the Yankees’ number all season.
Toronto went 8-5 against New York in the 2025 regular season, so maybe Isiah Kiner-Falefa really is on to something with his recent jab at the Yankees….
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