Last night, manager Joe Maddon used eight relievers to try to save the Rays' season, but it was to no avail. “I don’t want to be a cliché, but there’s nothing to hang our heads about,” Maddon said, according to Roger Mooney of The Tampa Tribune. “There really isn’t. A great battle all season. We were an up-and-down kind of team. We hit some really good moments and some really bad moments, but at the end of the day you still won 92 games. That’s pretty good.” Here's more out of the AL East..
- Even though Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner says that he will exceed $189MM if Brian Cashman presents him with an offer that he feels isn't capable of winning a title, but there's virtually no chance of that happening, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The good news is that if Alex Rodriguez is suspended through next year, the Yanks would still have about $80MM to spend. That could be enough to re-sign Robinson Cano while going out and getting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, catcher Brian McCann, and an infield insurance policy such as Jhonny Peralta or Stephen Drew.
- The Red Sox's midseason trade for Jake Peavy paid off in a major way, writes Tim Britton of the Providence Journal. Having Peavy for a critical postseason game like last night s exactly why Boston pulled the trigger on the deal.
- The Rays are heading into yet another uncertain offseason, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Principal owner Stuart Sternberg has said the 2014 budget will be affected by the team's poor attendance this season and the Rays' were already 28th this year with a $58MM payroll. David Price will obviously be a trade candidate and Fernando Rodney seems ticketed for a bigger payday elsewhere.
