ORLANDO, Fla. — Earlier this week, New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone had a thoughtful response when asked about how to close the gap between his team and the Toronto Blue Jays.
“Well, I mean, playing better against them is the real simple answer,” Boone told New York-based reporters at the Winter Meetings. “At the end of the day, we ended up knotted with them. But in the head-to-head, they kicked our butt, and especially in those summer months. In that stretch where we were scuffling a little bit, they beat us up, including a four-game sweep up there, and that obviously ended up really hurting us.
“We got them two out of three at home late in the year, when we were in a better place,” Boone continued. “And, obviously, they were on fire against us in the playoffs. Look, it comes down to against other good teams, execution, performance, game plan, all that, because the margin’s thin against other great teams.”
When the regular season ended, the Blue Jays and Yankees had identical 94-68 records, but the Blue Jays won the AL East because they took the season series 8-5. Then, in the post-season, the Blue Jays won the ALDS in four games on their way to an eventual World Series matchup against the Dodgers.
It was a season where every advantage mattered, no matter how small. And under those circumstances it’s noteworthy that, according to industry sources, the Blue Jays picked up on at least one on-field tell from the Yankees during the ALDS — an observation that helped Blue Jays hitters on the way to a four-game series win.
The sources were not authorized to speak about the matter or share further details about what the Blue Jays saw because the information was sensitive and could impact future games. But this much is already clear: as the Blue Jays and Yankees pushed for the AL East title in September, the teams were eyeing one closely in search of possible tells.
On Sept. 5, Cam Schlittler allowed four runs in just 1.2 innings against the Blue Jays. Afterward, he’d say he tipped pitches against Toronto. Two days later, Aaron Judge and the Yankees had something on Max Scherzer, chasing him from the game in the fifth inning.
“Yeah, they were relaying,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said at the time. “They’re good at it. Max has got to be a little bit better. It was obvious in the changeups.
“And it’s fair game.”
As Schneider said in September, observations like this are legal and have been part of the game for as long as it’s been played. They’re made every October from the wild-card round all the way to the World Series, and this doesn’t mean that the Yankees were sloppy or that the same advantage will continue into 2026.
Ultimately, it’s on the players to execute, regardless of what information they get. In this instance, Blue Jays players performed at an extremely high level, batting a collective .338/.373/.601 as a team against Yankees pitchers. Whatever small advantage their information might have provided, it only matters so much when facing Max Fried, Luis Gil, Carlos Rodon and Schlittler.
Blue Jays hitters still had to execute in the ALDS — and they did.
Even so, the example does illustrate improved internal cohesion from a Blue Jays team that finished last in the American League East in 2024. Not only did Toronto’s staff become aware of some key details about the Yankees, they were able to communicate those observations to the players, who trusted the messages relayed by those around them. Most importantly, the players then performed, advancing to the ALCS and beyond.
While perhaps surprising to outside observers, those within the game know this type of observational give and take is part of everyday life at field level. Every advantage matters, no matter how small, especially when the stakes are highest. In the end, the players will determine the outcome — and ideally the information helps.
In the World Series, the Dodgers were watching the Blue Jays closely, according to sources, believing that Toronto might have had something on them, too (again, this is allowed within MLB rules). Whether the Blue Jays did or not isn’t clear, but the mind games throughout October were definitely real.
And when a new season begins in a couple months’ time, the challenge of observing, communicating and ultimately taking advantage of those small details will start all over again.
