Lin-Manuel Miranda Congratulates Cousin Jose on Being Called Up by Twins
May 3, 2022
FORT MYERS, FL- MARCH 30: Jose Miranda #64 of the Minnesota Twins fields during a spring training game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on March 30, 2022 at the Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images)
It turns out Lin-Manuel Miranda isn't the only talented person in his family.
The Hamilton playwright's cousin, Jose Miranda, made his MLB debut Monday with the Minnesota Twins, leading to a shoutout from Lin-Manuel:
I got a cousin in the Major Leagues! Felicidades Primo! All the Mirandas are cheering! -LMM https://t.co/jCs29QpFNH
Jose Miranda is the No. 3 prospect in the Twins organization and the No. 93 overall prospect in baseball. He's coming off a brilliant 2021 campaign that saw him hit 344/.401/.572 with 30 home runs and 94 RBI in the minors and earn the Twins' Minor League Player of the Year honors.
"I'm trying to stay calm, let the game come to me and play hard," Miranda said. "The team is playing really well right now, so it's a good moment to be here."
Miranda went 0-for-4 in his MLB debut, batting sixth in the order and playing third base. The Twins will likely use him in a utility role at third, second and first base.
Twins' Miguel Sano to Undergo Surgery on Knee Injury; Recovery Timetable TBD
May 3, 2022
Minnesota Twins' Miguel Sano defends first base against the Detroit Tigers in a baseball game, Wednesday, Sept. 29, 2021, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
Minnesota Twins slugger Miguel Sano will undergo surgery for a torn meniscus, and there is no timetable for his return.
Sano was previously placed on the injured list on Monday.
In his eighth MLB season, Sano has struggled mightily at the plate to start the 2022 campaign. He is slashing .093/.231/.148 with one home run and three RBI in 17 appearances.
Sano's average has been a major concern for years, as he has hit above .223 just once since the start of the 2018 season. Despite his .223 average last year, he was able to hit 30 homers and drive in 75 runs in 135 games.
This season, however, he has struggled both in terms of average and power at the plate.
The 2017 All-Star has missed at least 40 games in each of his full MLB seasons. While he was healthy in 2020, that came in a pandemic-shortened season.
Time to Buy into the Hype: A Healthy Byron Buxton Is MLB's Best Player
May 2, 2022
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - APRIL 23: Byron Buxton #25 of the Minnesota Twins celebrates his solo home run against the Chicago White Sox in the fourth inning of the game at Target Field on April 23, 2022 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins defeated the White Sox 9-2. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
It's common for superhero alter egos to have alliterative names. Think Clark Kent. Or Bruce Banner. Or Peter Parker.
Or Byron Buxton, whose superpower is being the best player in Major League Baseball when he's able to play.
This is to say that, apart from that one caveat, we don't necessarily disagree with what Minnesota Twins manager Rocco Baldelli thinks about his $100 million center fielder:
Rocco Baldelli on @Twins@OfficialBuck103 Sunday: "I think he's absolutely the best player in the world"
— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) April 26, 2022
As takes go, this is pretty hot. It would have been safer for Baldelli to name, say, Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Nestor Cortes (sarcasm...sort of) as the best baseball player in the world.
The obvious complication in him naming Buxton is, well, obvious. As much as anything he does on the field, the 28-year-old is known for how often he's not on the field. He's missed literally hundreds of days to injuries since beginning his big league career in 2015, including a handful already this year with knee and hand ailments.
And yet, it says a lot that Buxton's case as baseball's best player is compelling even though his injury history is no great secret.
In just 14 games this season, he's already up to a 1.100 OPS and seven home runs. His OPS+ since the start of last year is up to 179, which tops all hitters who've taken at least 300 plate appearances.
Buxton has likewise put up 5.8 rWAR in his last 75 games, which computes to a 12.1-rWAR pace over a full season. Never mind Trout, Ohtani, Soto or Guerrero. Among position players, that's territory in which only Babe Ruth, Rogers Hornsby and Carl Yastrzemski have ever tread.
Such is the CliffsNotes version of Buxton's candidacy as baseball's best player, anyway. It was perhaps always meant to be this way, even if it took a little longer than expected for things to come together for him.
What Buxton Mainly Does
Here's a pretty good representation of what Buxton brings to the table as a hitter these days:
This was the second home run that Buxton hit on April 24 at Target Field against the Chicago White Sox, and certainly the more impressive of the two.
He turned around a 96 mph fastball from one of the league's top closers, hitting it 111.8 mph off the bat and ultimately 469 feet in distance. As Sarah Langs of MLB.com noted, it's the longest walk-off home run of the eight-year Statcast era.
That kind of contact has more or less been the norm for Buxton over the last two seasons, but especially so in 2022. The 97.5 mph he's averaging on batted balls is the best in the league. He's ahead of even New York Yankees sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, who both have a couple of inches and dozens of pounds on the 6'2", 190-pound Buxton.
This is part of the whole "meant to be" thing. When MLB.com slotted Buxton into the No. 1 spot in its prospect rankings for the 2014 season, its report read in part: "Buxton's power has already been better than expected, and scouts expect it to improve more as he grows."
In addition to consistent playing time by way of injuries, demotions and non-promotions, what Buxton lacked in his early seasons—i.e., he slugged only .387 between 2015 and 2018—was a proper vessel through which he could realize his power. In simpler, less pretentious terms: It was a struggle for him to find the right stance in the box.
Whether the difference was in the placement of his feet, the arrangement of his legs or in the positioning of his hands, we spotted at least seven distinct stances when digging through Buxton's video archive:
And this is just his stances. He also had to try out various timing mechanisms, from more exaggerated leg kicks to more subtle toe taps.
The mechanics he has now—upright with his weight loaded on his back leg and his hands held high, with a timing device that's more toe tap than leg kick—are just about perfect. Specifically to the extent that they've helped turn one of his more notable flaws into a strength that few, if any, can match.
This would be his ability to hit the fastball, which is best seen in this graph of his slugging against fastballs through the years:
Between 2015 and 2018, Buxton was 335th in slugging against fastballs. He took a turn for the better in 2019, and more recently he owns a .768 slugging percentage against fastballs since the start of last season. That's the best in baseball by a wide margin, as no other hitter is even in the .700s with him.
The catch should be that Buxton also still swings and misses a fair deal (i.e., 29.7 percent this season) against fastballs, but that seems to actually work to his advantage. It's an incentive for pitchers to keep feeding him fastballs, which they are to the tune of a 55.9 percentage in 2022.
Such is the beauty of Buxton's rise as one of baseball's premier sluggers: He has both the engine and the plentiful supply of fuel to keep it going.
What Buxton Also Does
Even before he broke out as a hitter, Buxton was tailor-made for the Statcast era in at least three ways.
For one, dude can run:
Byron Buxton had a sprint speed of 30.9 ft/sec on his infield single!
It's largely thanks to these components that Buxton was able to have a star-caliber season in 2017 even as his hitting was below average by way of a 93 OPS+. He went 29-for-30 in stolen bases over 140 games, and he easily led all center fielders with 22 defensive runs saved to win his first Gold Glove.
If outs above average is a better measure of Buxton's defensive quality, well, so be it. His 60 OAA since 2016 ranks fourth among center fielders, though the only one of his peers who can match his 94 percent success rate making plays is three-time Gold Glover Kevin Kiermaier.
Thus far in 2022, about the only discernible red flag in these other phases of Buxton's game concerns his speed. He's averaging 28.2 feet per second on his sprints, marking the first time in his career that his average sprint has slipped below 30 feet per second.
It's a bit early to read too much into that, however. Even setting aside the scare he had with his knee, the bad weather that Buxton and the Twins have played in so far this year hasn't exactly been conducive to running.
If Buxton's speed eventually does come around, he's going to conclude the year with a veritable pile of highlights that have nothing to do with his bat. In this way, at least, his 2022 season will be no different from any season that came before.
What Buxton Doesn't Always Do
Lest anyone think that injuries are Buxton's only real flaw, even we're a little turned off by his general disregard for free passes.
He's walked in only 5.9 percent of his career plate appearances, which ranks among the lowest rates among all hitters since the 2015 season. This is also an area of the game where he's not getting better. His walk rate thus far in 2022 is a minuscule 3.4 percent.
Paradoxically, though, Buxton isn't an entirely undisciplined hitter. Far from a Javier Baez or a Salvador Perez, he's been more of an Eric Hosmer with his rate of swings outside the strike zone over the last two seasons. Though certainly a lesser one, it's yet another reason why the quality of his contact has improved so dramatically.
As for how all the injuries can be explained away...well, fine. You've got us there.
There's nary a part of his body that hasn't been banged up at some point or another, and the causes have ranged from unexplained breakdowns to literal bad breaks. His 2021 season was a microcosm in these regards, as his hip strain seemed to come out of nowhere while his broken hand was the direct result of a hit-by-pitch.
The psychological strain of all these injuries, meanwhile, can't be discounted.
"He's beyond upset. And that's what I would expect from him," Baldelli told reporters after Buxton broke his hand on a hit-by-pitch last year. "I think the number of traumas, physically, that he's had to deal with, and because of that, emotionally, when you have to deal with that many types of things, difficult things, it's hard on you."
But especially in this context, it's encouraging downright impressive that Buxton has been able to get on and thus far maintain an upward trajectory into superstardom. And even if his injury history can't be disregarded as one great, big warning of future injuries to come, what matters most is that Buxton is healthy in the here and now.
So, might as well enjoy what he has to offer while he's offering it. And since he's the only player in baseball right now who's as elite at slugging as he is at fielding, running and throwing, suffice it to say there's a lot to enjoy.
Report: Twins' Byron Buxton Likely out a Week with Knee Injury; No Structural Damage
Apr 16, 2022
Minnesota Twins' Byron Buxton rounds third base en route to scoring against the Seattle Mariners on a double by Jorge Polanco in the first inning of a baseball game Monday, April 11, 2022, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
Minnesota Twins center fielder Byron Buxton reportedly did not suffer any structural damage after exiting his team's 8-4 road win over the Boston Red Sox with right knee soreness Friday.
Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and Fox Sports, the ailment will "probably will require a week or so off."
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli provided a Saturday update, via Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com:
MRI on Byron Buxton's sore right knee showed no structural issues, Rocco said. No roster move for now. They plan for him to go to KC with the team.
"It might be a day-to-day thing right now, roster move-wise, in just what we're going to do and what we learn more about Buck."
The 28-year-old Buxton already has three home runs in seven games this year.
The eight-year MLB veteran broke out offensively in 2021 with 19 home runs, 32 RBI, a .306 batting average and 1.005 OPS in 61 games. After the year, he signed a seven-year, $100 million extension with the Twins.
Unfortunately, Buxton has suffered numerous injuries over the past four years that have kept him off the field more often than not.
After appearing in a career-high 140 games in 2017, Buxton has missed nearly two-thirds of the contests played by the Twins over the past four-plus seasons. Friday was only the 222nd time he’s suited up in 665 games since the start of the 2018 season.
Whether it’s a broken finger, concussion-like symptoms, migraine headaches, a broken toe, a bruised forearm, a torn labrum or even a broken tooth (that one didn’t cost him any games), Buxton has had difficulty staying healthy.
Thankfully, this injury doesn't appear likely to keep Buxton out for long. If he misses a week or so, then he'll likely be out for the remainder of the team's road trip against the Red Sox (three games) and Kansas City Royals (three more). Minnesota will return home Friday for a three-game set with the Chicago White Sox.
As for a contingency plan, options include playing Nick Gordon at center or moving Max Kepler to center and inserting Kyle Garlick in right. Gordon had a single and two runs in place of Buxton on Friday.
Chris Paddack, Emilio Pagan Reportedly Traded from Padres to Twins for Taylor Rogers
Apr 6, 2022
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - AUGUST 30: Chris Paddack #59 of the San Diego Padres prepares to deliver a first inning pitch against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on August 30, 2021 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
The Minnesota Twins are reportedly trading relief pitcher Taylor Rogers to the San Diego Padres for Chris Paddack and Emilio Pagan, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
Dennis Lin of The Athletic added outfielder Brent Rooker will also be going to the Padres in the deal.
Rosenthal first reported Wednesday night that the deal was in the works.
That follows a report from USA Today's Bob Nightengale on Monday that the Padres were shopping Paddack:
The San Diego #Padres are keeping Sean Manaea, and have no plans to flip him, while continuing to engage with teams on starter Chris Paddack.
The Padres were reportedly targeting Rogers in the talks:
Among the many things they are working on, the Padres are talking with the Twins about LH reliever Taylor Rogers, sources tell me and @sdutSanders. It is unclear everything a deal with the Twins might involve. @Ken_Rosenthal reported the Twins are trying to acquire Chris Paddack.
Paddack, 26, appeared in 23 games (22 starts) for the Padres last season, finishing 7-7 with a 5.07 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 99 strikeouts in 108.1 innings.
Since a fantastic rookie season in 2019 (9-7, 3.33 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 153 strikeouts), however, Paddack has steadily seen his quality decline over the past two seasons.
And with a loaded rotation that includes Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, Sean Manaea, Blake Snell and Mike Clevinger, there wasn't a natural spot in the rotation for Paddack.
Minnesota, meanwhile, might be banking on Paddack rediscovering the form that made him an important part of San Diego's rotation in 2019. There's clearly potential:
Chris Paddack has a good changeup, & by Pitching+, pushed his curveball to an average pitch last year. By doing so, he cost his fastball ride and that pitch slipped below average, but that’s where the upside is: if he can get the ride back on his fastball, it could still click.
The Twins currently have Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan, Dylan Bundy, Bailey Ober and Chris Archer filling out their rotation. It's a completely different group than the rotation that started the 2021 season and one loaded with questions.
Paddack would fit right in—the Twins have plenty of potential in their staff, but recent results have been lacking.
Report: Carlos Correa, Twins Agree to 3-Year, $105.3M Contract After Leaving Astros
Mar 19, 2022
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 31: Carlos Correa, #1 of the Houston Astros hits during Game 5 of the 2021 World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on Sunday, October 31, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Jessie Alcheh/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Free-agent shortstop Carlos Correa has agreed to a three-year, $105.3 million contract with the Minnesota Twins, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston reported the deal includes opt-out opportunities after each of the first two years.
In the end, Scott Boras and Carlos Correa got the perfect contract:$35M a year for 3, but FA agent again at 28 or 29. while Twins get a star at a position where they had no apparent regular.
One of the concepts that Carlos Correa's camp ran past the Astros was a short-term contract for $40m annually, with opt-outs throughout... For the Twins: They get a great player to start the year, and if they struggle, a very tradable piece for midseason.
The news comes after Correa declined a one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer from the Houston Astros. He also turned down a five-year, $160 million deal from the franchise, per Berman.
The 27-year-old had spent his entire seven-year career in Houston and became a free agent for the first time this offseason. He was one of the top free-agent shortstops on the market, joining Trevor Story, Corey Seager, Javier Baez and Marcus Semien.
Correa had a great 2021 season, hitting .279/.366/.485 with a career-high 26 home runs along with 92 RBI, earning his second All-Star selection and first Gold Glove. He's hit .277/.356/.481 across seven seasons with the Astros.
Correa also received interest from the New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners, among others, this winter.
With the 2015 AL Rookie of the Year off the market, Story is the most high-profile shortstop still available.
Houston could also play Aledmys Diaz at shortstop, and prospect Jeremy Pena might be ready for the majors come 2022, as The Athletic's Jake Kaplan noted.
The Astros, who went 95-67 last season and reached the World Series for the third time in the last five seasons, might also shift their focus to the pitching staff.
For the Twins, meanwhile, Correa will take on a key role within a lineup that also features Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano and Jorge Polanco. They also acquired catcher Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela from the Yankees.
Minnesota kicks off the regular season on April 7 when it hosts the Seattle Mariners.
Josh Donaldson, Isiah Kiner-Falefa Traded to Yankees; Twins Get Sanchez, Urshela
Mar 14, 2022
Minnesota Twins' Josh Donaldson (20) celebrates with third base coach Tony Diaz after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Josh Donaldson is on the move to the Bronx in a headliner deal.
The New York Yankees acquired Donaldson, infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Ben Rortvedt from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for catcher Gary Sanchez and third baseman Gio Urshela.
Donaldson, 36, is entering his 12th MLB season. He hit .247 (.827 OPS) with 26 home runs and 72 RBI in 135 games for the Twins last year.
The three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger had his best years with the Toronto Blue Jays.
In 2015, Donaldson won the American League MVP en route to leading the Jays to an AL East title and AL Championship Series appearance. He finished fourth in the MVP voting in 2016 when the Jays made a return trip to the ALCS.
From 2015 to 2017, Donaldson averaged 37 home runs and 100 RBI while hitting .285 (.946 OPS).
Injuries plagued Donaldson in 2018, but he enjoyed a resurgent 2019 season, smacking 37 homers and driving in 94 runners for the National League East-winning Atlanta Braves.
Donaldson signed a four-year, $92 million contract with the Twins as a free agent before the 2020 campaign. The bottom fell out on the 2019 and 2020 AL Central champions, though, as the team finished last at 73-89 in 2021.
Now he heads to a Yankees team that is surely in win-now mode and will benefit form his power as it looks toward the playoffs.
Kiner-Falefa is a slick-fielding infielder who can play multiple positions. He won a Gold Glove in 2020 and was a solid offensive contributor at times last year while slashing .271/.312/.357 with 20 stolen bases.
The trade cost New York some notable pieces.
Sanchez is a two-time All-Star who won a Silver Slugger in 2017 and has four seasons with 20 or more home runs. Urshela hit 21 home runs in 2019 and just slashed .267/.301/.419 with 14 long balls and 49 RBI last year.
Byron Buxton, Twins Reportedly Agree to 7-Year, $100M Contract Extension
Nov 28, 2021
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - SEPTEMBER 25: Minnesota Twins Outfield Byron Buxton (25) heads to the dugout at the end of an inning during a game between the Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays on September 25, 2021, at Target Field in Minneapolis, MN.(Photo by Nick Wosika/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Minnesota Twins have agreed to a seven-year, $100 million extension with veteran center fielder Byron Buxton, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
More details:
$1M signing bonus. 2022 salary-$9M 2023-28-$15M per season
MVP bonuses, believed to be unprecedented, for every year of deal.
Rosenthal had previously reported a deal was close, with Jeff Passan of ESPN adding that the two sides had agreed to a nine-figure deal.
The deal comes as the 27-year-old was set to enter his final year of arbitration. Rosenthal and Dan Hayes of The Athletic reported July 25 that the two sides hadn't reached an agreement on a long-term extension, thus raising the potential of a trade.
Hayes and Rosenthal also reported Minnesota's best offer to that point included at least $80 million guaranteed over seven years.
The Twins' hesitance to go higher than that was understandable, as was Buxton's belief that the total didn't match up with what his value could be in the future. Perhaps there's also some lingering frustration with how the organization handled his service time years ago.
When he's healthy, the No. 2 pick in the 2012 draft can be one of the most dynamic players in MLB. Over 140 games in 2017, he hit 16 home runs and had a .314 on-base percentage while stealing 29 bases and winning a Gold Glove in center.
As he became more accustomed to major league pitching, his offense started to come around. In 18 games across April and March this year, Buxton had eight homers and a 1.363 OPS.
Once again, though, injuries got in the way of his success. The Baxley, Georgia, native missed time because of a strained right hip before he fractured his left hand after getting hit by a pitch in June.
Buxton returned in August and finished 2021 with 61 appearances. He closed the year on a high, posting a .966 OPS in 29 games across September and October, per Baseball Reference.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli had a promising career derailed by injuries, so he had an idea what Buxton might be experiencing in terms of his frustration at missing so much time.
"He's beyond upset. And that's what I would expect from him," he told reporters in June. "... I think the number of traumas, physically, that he's had to deal with, and because of that, emotionally, when you have to deal with that many types of things, difficult things, it's hard on you."
During his hot start to 2021, Buxton was basically the best hitter in MLB, outperforming even Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout. Were it not for his hip and hand injuries, he almost certainly would've cooled off eventually. Still, that stretch illustrated his tantalizing potential.
When it comes to Buxton's health, no team knows more than the Twins. Their willingness to hand him a multiyear extension is seemingly a sign of the franchise's confidence in his ability to turn a corner in that regard.
To some extent, this also sends a message to the players and fanbase that ownership will pony up to keep Minnesota's best homegrown stars around.
Byron Buxton Trade Rumors: Twins 'Reluctant' to Upset Fans by Moving Star OF
Nov 16, 2021
Minnesota Twins' Byron Buxton reacts after hitting a two-run home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Oct. 3, 2021. (AP Photo/Colin E. Braley)
Public opinion is reportedly having some impact on whether the Minnesota Twins will trade Byron Buxton.
Per The Athletic's Dan Hayes and Ken Rosenthal, Twins chairman Jim Pohlad is "reluctant" to move the 27-year-old because "such a decision potentially would upset a fanbase tired of seeing the team part with homegrown stars."
Buxton is entering his final year of arbitration in 2022. He was rumored to be on the trade block in July, but the Twins kept him.
Minnesota is in a difficult position with Buxton. He has been excellent over the past three seasons with a .277/.321/.575 slash line, 42 homers and 25 stolen bases.
Per ESPN.com, Buxton tied for eighth among all center fielders in defensive wins above replacement in 2021 (1.2).
Buxton is the kind of player every organization in Major League Baseball should want to build around if you only look at his stats.
But durability has been a problem for him throughout his career. The 2017 Gold Glove winner has missed at least 22 games in each of his seven seasons. He has only appeared in 215 out of a possible 546 games since the start of 2018.
Minnesota's struggles last season prompted the front office to start selling off players at the trade deadline, including Jose Berrios, Nelson Cruz, J.A. Happ and Hansel Robles.
Berrios was the only player under team control beyond the 2021 season, but he is also part of what might concern Pohlad about the backlash.
The right-hander was a first-round pick (No. 32 overall) in the same 2012 draft class with Buxton (No. 2). Both players were developed by the organization and helped them win back-to-back American League Central titles in 2019 and 2020.
Blue Jays' Ryan Borucki, Charlie Montoyo Suspended After Kevin Kiermaier HBP
Sep 23, 2021
Tampa Bay Rays' Kevin Kiermaier, right, is held back by home plate umpire Bruce Dreckman and Toronto Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen after Kiermaier was hit with a pitch by starting pitcher Ryan Borucki, right, during the eighth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2021, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)
Toronto Blue Jays reliever Ryan Borucki and manager Charlie Montoyo have been suspended after Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier was hit by a pitch during Wednesday's game.
Borucki received a three-game suspension, which he is expected to appeal. Montoyo told reporters at Target Field that he received a one-game ban, and he will serve it on Thursday against the Minnesota Twins.
The situation between Kiermaier and the Jays began on Monday night. The Rays outfielder picked up a data card that fell out of Toronto catcher Alejandro Kirk's wristband as he was making a tag on Kiermaier at the plate.
Per Arash Madani of SportsNet, the card contained Toronto's pitching game plan for Rays hitters.
Montoyo told reporters after Tuesday's game between the two teams that Rays manager Kevin Cash apologized to him for the situation. The Blue Jays skipper described it as "agua under the bridge" at that point.
Borucki apparently didn't get that message for the final game of the series on Wednesday night. The left-hander hit Kiermaier in the back with his first pitch in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Both benches cleared, though there was no physical altercation, and Borucki was immediately ejected from the game. Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker was also tossed out by the umpires after arguing about Borucki's ejection.
The Rays went on to win the game 7-1 to clinch their third consecutive postseason berth.
