Griffin: Gaston tells Jays to play for pride

Spoilers alert!

Manager Cito Gaston called his first meeting of the year before Saturday’s game to let his team know they weren’t going to mail in the results for the final month. Pride of the Jays.

His team had looked flat on Friday in support of Brandon Morrow, making his final start before being shut down. Face it, the optics were bad for the Jays, who are not mathematically eliminated — yet. If the front office could shut down one of their best starters, what signal did that send the team? On Saturday, the Jays showed more hustle and heart in a 7-5 loss, even if the outcome was the same.

“It was just a reminder of how far they’ve come this year,” Gaston said of his three-minute closed-door session before BP. “They have showed a lot of heart and hustle. I certainly congratulated them on the way they played this year and the way they handled themselves through good times and bad times. Let’s finish hard, go home and be proud of what you’ve done this year.”

...“It’s just respect that you do that,” Gaston said. “Why would you play your second-string guys with no experience against Tampa, then turn around and play your best against New York. It wouldn’t be fair to the two Joes (Girardi and Maddon). I have a lot of respect for both of those guys, the Yankees organization, the Rays organization and for myself, too. I wouldn’t do that.”