Stanton unfazed by Rays' trolling: Shirts, hats don't mean anything

The Tampa Bay Rays are enjoying their time as division champions, but Giancarlo Stanton and the New York Yankees aren't letting any mind games interfere with the task at hand.

After winning the AL East for the first time since 2010, Rays players wore shirts and hats that referenced a Kevin Cash quote regarding the Yankees. After New York closer Aroldis Chapman threw at Mike Brosseau's head on Sept. 1 - earning a suspension that is still being appealed - Cash told reporters, "The last thing I'll say on it is I've got a whole damn stable full of guys that throw 98 miles an hour."

The shirts featured a stable of horses while the hats said "Tampa Bay 98ers."

"They won the division, now it's our turn to let them just have the division," Stanton said Thursday, according to SNY, one day after the club's series sweep of the Cleveland Indians.

"The full bragging rights chance is here. Shirts and hats, that doesn't mean anything. We're going to be here in San Diego, and we can play it out there."

Tampa Bay was the only AL team to reach the 40-win plateau in the shortened 2020 campaign, finishing 40-20 and as the top seed in the Junior Circuit. The Rays then swept the Toronto Blue Jays in the wild-card series.

The Yankees, meanwhile, finished as the AL's No. 5 seed at 33-27. New York swept the Indians despite playing the entire wild-card series in Cleveland.

This will mark the first time that the two teams meet in the postseason. The Rays won the season series 8-2, outscoring New York 47-34 over the 10 games.