NEW YORK – Tony La Russa came by the Toronto Blue Jays clubhouse to present Colby Rasmus with a St. Louis Cardinals World Series ring Wednesday, but instead had to leave it with an intermediary when the former foes failed to connect.

Rasmus said there was "no doubt" he would have met with the former manager he had a troubled relationship with, but couldn’t because "it just didn’t work out right."

"I just had stuff going on this morning, I got family and stuff here, I wasn’t able to connect with him," said Rasmus. "But I sent word that I appreciated it, thanks for the gesture. That was about it. There wasn’t no CIA secret stuff going on."

The Blue Jays acquired Rasmus last July after his relationship with La Russa deteriorated to the point they could no longer co-exist. While the Cardinals used their return from the deal to win an unlikely championship, the centre-fielder got the fresh start he needed in Toronto, blossoming this season.

Rasmus said he hadn’t looked at the ring yet, and that it holds some meaning to him after all he had gone through, although he was eager to keep looking forward, not back.

"I put in a lot of blood, sweat and tears over there," he explained. "Now I’m looking forward to our game today, not trying to get caught up in the stuff that happened. I’m trying to play for this team, glad I’m here, happy to be here, not worried about any of the other stuff."