Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay fires back at “skewed” narrative after Blue Jays announcer’s broom tease

New York Yankees broadcaster received flak for his comments on the Toronto Blue Jays after the AL East team not only swept the Bronx Bombers but also dethroned them from the top spot in the division earlier this week.

Jamie Campbell of Rogers Sportsnet called out Kay for his "the Blue Jays are not a first-place team" comment made at the start of the series after Toronto defeated the Yankees in four consecutive games.

"I can think of a certain Yankees broadcaster, in fact, who is going to have to go on his show and admit that the Blue Jays are a first-place team because the standings prove it," Campbell had said while waving a broom.

Ahead of the series finale against the New York Mets, the Yankees broadcaster responded to his criticism.

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"What I would say to Jamie is I can easily say the Blue Jays are a first-place team because I’m not a fawning fanboy. I’m a broadcaster,” Kay said on the YESeNetwork. "The whole narrative has been skewed by people who misinterpret it and didn't hear everything that I said on my radio show.

"I was talking about the Pythagorean theorem of run differential, which would indicate that the Blue Jays should not have a record as good as they have. I was complimenting the Blue Jays that they've exceeded the expectations that the numbers would put on them. I never said that run differential is more important than wins and losses."

Michael Kay fires back at Blue Jays presenter for 'broom' antics

After clarifying his earlier comments, Michael Kay took a shot at his fellow broadcaster for taking out the broom during his segment.

“Imagine if (YES Network studio analyst) Jack Curry was waving a broom on the Yankees postgame show,” Kay said. “He would probably be called into the office and shortly fired after that.

“Now, I love Toronto. It is a cosmopolitan city. It is one of the greatest cities in the world, for me. You’re waving a broom on a postgame show, you are turning it into Mayberry RFD. I just don’t get it. I don’t understand it. You should be proud of the fact you are in first place.

The Yankees are three games behind the Blue Jays after avoiding a series sweep against the Mets on Sunday with a 6-4 win at Citi Field.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash