The Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees are set to meet in a best-of-three Wild Card Series in the Bronx, starting with Game 1 on Tuesday. However, if we rewind just a little bit to game 162, the Yankees and their division rivals Blue Jays, entered that finale game tied atop in the standings. Toronto did hold an edge in the tiebreaker, as all they required was either a win or a Yankees loss to notch the division. However, a former Yankees veteran believes the Blue Jays carried a hidden edge that went largely unnoticed.

The Yankees did what they had to do, defeating the Orioles 3-2. The Blue Jays didn’t flinch either; they routed the Tampa Bay Rays 13-4 and secured their division crown, their first since 2015. However, Former Yankee player Clint Frazier insisted that the Rays didn’t exactly play fair.

“They got to face a Tampa Bay Rays lineup that looked to be not the same as a regular one that wanted to compete. So it kind of felt like with the way that the Yankees and Rays rivalry has gone over the last few seasons that the Rays punted a lineup out there for the Blue Jays to ultimately just take the division.” Frazier said on his YouTube channel on Monday.

Although the Rays and the Yankees don’t have a historic rivalry, tensions between them have flared repeatedly in recent years. Both clubs often play each other since they share the same division. Over the years, there have been multiple hit-by-pitch controversies, trash talks, and intense playoff clashes like that of the 2020 ALDS, where the Rays eliminated the Yankees in a tense five-game series.

At the end, Frazier also issued a firm warning to the Blue Jays. “I’m really hoping that somehow the Yankees beat these Red Sox. And so I get another chance to knock them out. They kept receipts. I’m keeping receipts. If we, the Yankees, knock out the f——-g Blue Jays in the playoffs, you guys better watch out.”

To Frazier, it feels like nothing short of betrayal by the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays didn’t have their home park in 2025, and consequently, they played all of their home games of 2025 at St. Petersburg to Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, the spring training home of the Yankees, who stepped in to help them. So, Frazier indirectly accused the Rays of duplicity.

Can the Yankees defeat the Red Sox to get one more shot at the Blue Jays?

The Boston Red Sox have arrived in the Bronx for a much-anticipated three-game series. For the record, the Red Sox have won the last three postseason series against the Yankees. It goes back to the miraculous 3-0 comeback in 2004. Then they beat the Bronx bombers by 3-1 in the 2018 ALDS and also took home the last wildcard game against the Yankees in 2021.

Coming to the 2025 season, in the regular season, the Red Sox secured the series 9-4 against the Yankees, including their eight straight wins against their arch-nemesis. Now, for Tuesday’s game, both teams have announced their starting pitchers for game 1. From the Red Sox, it’ll be Garrett Crochet who will take the mound. Meanwhile, from the Yankees, Max Fried will be up against the Red Sox hitters.

Garret Crochet will be finishing this season in the top three for Cy Young voting and has surely had one of the best seasons of his career. He had pitched against the Bronx Bombers four times this year, and all resulted in big wins for the Red Sox.

Both teams have had star-studded rosters this season. The Yankees, in particular, had seven players hit more than 20 home runs this year. While Aaron Judge led the team with 53 homers, Trent Grisham added 34 and played excellent defense in centerfield all season.

On the other hand, Giancarlo Stanton, who missed most of the first half, hit 24 home runs in just 77 games and was on fire in last year’s playoffs. That makes him dangerous for the Red Sox this time. The Yankees will hope to secure this game not just to win against the Red Sox and head to October but also to get the last laugh at the Blue Jays.