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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 08: New York Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman speaks to the media prior to the start of the game against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on April 08, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)

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The New York Yankees have come up short in some recent battles with their division rival.

As the team looked to secure a playoff spot after a harsh slump in the standings toward the end of this past season, the Yankees battled with the Toronto Blue Jays for a top spot in the American League East division and came up just short. Then, in an American League Division Series playoff matchup against the Blue Jays in October, the Yankees fell short again.

Now the Yankees appear to be losing to their division rival in an offseason contest for the most coveted free agent on the market.

“Kyle Tucker, the top player in this winter’s free-agent class, visited with the Blue Jays at their player development complex in Dunedin, Fla.,” Keegan Matheson reported for MLB.com. “The Blue Jay’s interest in Tucker has long been obvious. Now, by walking through those gates Tucker’s is, too.”

Shortly after reaching Game 7 of the World Series, then coming up short against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Blue Jays signaled their plans to significantly improve the roster by signing starter Dylan Cease to a $210 million contract. That seemed to only increase their edge over the Yankees, and might have lit a fire under the club to pursue their own top-tier free agent.

And Tucker would seem to be a fit for the Yankees as well, as the team lost outfielder Cody Bellinger to free agency and could look to replace him with a top-tier bat to pair with Aaron Judge.

But when asked about the rival’s decision to host Tucker, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman indicated that he had not matched the effort.

“Kyle Tucker visited the Blue Jays’ spring training facility in Dunedin recently, which is near Tampa,” The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner reported. “Brian Cashman said Tucker has not visited Steinbrenner Field. He did not say whether or not he expects him to visit at all.”

After a third-straight All-Star season with a second career Silver Slugger Award for the Chicago Cubs, Tucker is in line for a significant long-term contract this winter. But there is some question about whether the Yankees are going to be willing to significantly increase their payroll by giving out such a contract, after principal owner Hal Steinbrenner indicated that he’d like to see the payroll go down during a recent media session.

And after the Yankees responded to the Blue Jays’ decision to host Tucker with the admission that they haven’t done the same, and might never do so, it seems they could be comfortable seeing their division rival earn another kind of victory soon.