ORLANDO, Fla. -- New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the Toronto Blue Jays "kicked our ass" in 2025, but he doesn't believe the gap between the American League East rivals is nearly as wide as the matchups indicated.

The Blue Jays went 8-5 against the Yankees during the regular season, including a 6-1 record in Toronto, which served as the tiebreaker for the American League East title after both teams finished an AL-best 98-64. They then bludgeoned the Yankees in four games in the AL Division Series, outscoring them 34-19 on their way to falling a game short of winning the World Series.

"We ended up with the identical records last year," Boone said. "I don't want to discount that they kicked our ass last year. Don't take it out of context. ... We had the same exact record, but

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