'FAWING FAN BOY': Yankees broadcaster rips Sportsnet as on-air dust up amplifies
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After getting torched by Sportsnet studio host Jamie Campbell following the Jays decisive four-game sweep of the Yankees that concluded on Thursday, Yankees play-by-play man for the YES Network, Michael Kay, fired back on Sunday morning.
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On his regular Sundays with Kay segment on YES, Kay pulled no punches on what he thought about Campbell's comments directed at him this past Thursday and the fact that the Baseball Central host did his root for the home team act of waving then tossing a broom on air following a sweep.
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At the start of his Sunday conversation with @NancyNewmanYES, @RealMichaelKay addresses comments aimed in his direction regarding the Blue Jays. pic.twitter.com/saBCJ4ARsx
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) July 6, 2025
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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 and the bottom line is they are in fact a first place team,' Kay said after being set up for his response by long-time YES host and Toronto native who earlier in her career worked for TSN.
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'Also, the whole narrative has been skewed by people who misinterpreted and didn't hear everything I said. In fact, I was complimenting the Blue Jays that they've exceeded the expectations that (run differential would suggest.)'
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To backtrack, Kay and his comments became a flashpoint for the Jays following the 12-5 Canada Day win over the Yankees, in the second contest of the four-game sweep.
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'The Blue Jays are not a first-place team, I'm sorry,' Kay said dismissively on his radio show on ESPN New York. 'If you look at run differential … they're not playing great baseball. I'm sorry, they're not.'
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Those comments hit a nerve in Toronto, especially as the Jays swept the Yankees and won the first two of a series against the Los Angeles Angels to take a three-game lead in the AL East.
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Kay was clearly irked by some of the criticism from north of the border – including a subtle shot from Jays manager John Schneider who referenced the 'not a first place team' comments in a session with Toronto media.
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But what seems to have put him over the edge was Campbell's comments directed directly at him, which came after he threw the broom from the Baseball Central set at the Rogers Centre.
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'I can think of a certain Yankee broadcaster who is going to have to go on his show tomorrow and admit the Jays are a first place team because the standings prove it,' an emotionally charged Campbell said on the Sportsnet post-game show.
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Kay said that the last thing a Yankees broadcaster would be caught doing is waving a broom on air after the team swept an opponent.
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'It's kind of funny if you think about it. Imagine if (YES studio host) Jack Curry was waving a broom on the Yankees post-game show,' Kay said. 'He would probably be called into the office and shortly fired after that.
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