Kevin Kiermaier was hit by a pitch, apparent retribution for scooping up a Toronto scouting report two days earlier, and the Tampa Bay Rays clinched a postseason berth with a 7-1 victory over the Blue Jays.
Reliever Ryan Borucki hit Kiermaier on the back with his first pitch of the eighth inning, when the Rays led 7-1.
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Borucki was ejected after the umpires met, which prompted Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo and enraged pitching coach Pete Walker to storm out of the dugout to argue as played spilled onto the field, Walker also was tossed and there were no incidents between the players.
On Monday, Kiermaier picked up a scouting card that fell off the wristband of Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk during a play at the plate and refused to give it back. Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash apologised to the Blue Jays organisation.
Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo said postgame that the issue was “agua under the bridge.”
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Before the game Kiermaier said he was “shocked to see what has transpired” and finds reaction “just hard to believe” to his scooping up a scouting a card and casually picked it up taking it back to Tampa Bay’s dugout, where he discreetly handed it to Paul Hoover, the club’s field coordinator.
Kiermaier thought the card was his scouting report.
“We’re making this way too complex,” Kiermaier said. “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 realised it wasn’t ours and at that point, I’m not giving it back,” Kiermaier added. “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.”
Kiermaier pointed out his scouting card came out while sliding into second base during a recent game against Detroit and Tigers infielder Niko Goodrum tried grabbing it, Kiermaier jokingly put his foot on it and said “you can’t have it.”
When asked if he did anything wrong, Kiermaier replied: “No.”
“It’s easy to sit here after the fact knowing it’s their card, I understand,” Kiermaier said. “At that moment I just ran 360 feet-plus (trying to score on an infield hit and throwing error) and I’m sitting there trying to process the play, thinking my scouting report is on the ground, grabbing it, just walking back trying to go out there on defense and catch my breath thinking it’s done and over with.”
Austin Meadows hit a three-run homer during a six-run third inning for the AL East-leading Rays (94-59). The postseason berth is the third in a row and seventh since 2008 for the defending AL champions, who lost the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games last year.
Toronto (85-67) dropped into a tie for the second AL wild-card berth with the New York Yankees, who played later Wednesday. The Blue Jays lost two of three to Tampa Bay and are 16-5 in September.
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