ST. PETERSBURG -- By his own admission, Thursday was a weird day for Kevin Kiermaier.

“A little bit more weird than I thought,” he said.

The man who ranks fifth in Rays franchise history in games played and first in jaw-dropping catches arrived at Tropicana Field through a different entrance, wore a uniform with a different shade of blue and sat in a different dugout, across the way from familiar faces with whom he shared so many good times.

Prior to Thursday’s 6-1 win over the Blue Jays, as Kiermaier stood on the grounds he called home for nine years, he reflected on those good times.

“I think about all the great memories I’ve had, and no one will ever be able to take those away from me,” Kiermaier said. “I was born in Indiana in 1990, but I feel like baseball player Kevin Kiermaier was born here in 2014. I’m proud of that.”

The Rays’ 31st round pick in the 2010 MLB Draft, Kiermaier developed into one of this generation’s best defensive outfielders. A three-time Gold Glover and the American League’s Platinum Glove winner in 2015, he leads all center fielders with 71 Outs Above Average during the Statcast Era. 

After signing with the Blue Jays as a free agent during the offseason, the 32-year-old expected his first game against his old team to be an emotional experience. But he was caught a little off guard by just how emotional it was.

His voice cracked multiple times as he spoke about how much this franchise and the surrounding community mean to him.

“I’ll always have so much love for everything over here," Kiermaier said.

When asked for his favorite moment as a Ray, Kiermaier didn’t bring up a particular game or play.

“One thing I love, I didn’t care if it was a Monday, Saturday, 5,000 people [or] 30,000 -- I loved running out of that dugout and taking the field,” he said. “I got so much adrenaline from doing that, running out to center field and doing that.”

His voice quivered again.

“I loved doing that here for the last nine years. That’s my favorite thing to do.”

He got to do that again on Thursday, albeit for an AL East rival. And it didn’t take Kiermaier long to remind the 2,618 people in attendance of why he became such a fan favorite in that stadium.

With no outs in the bottom of the first, Rays right fielder Manuel Margot flared a pitch out into right-center field. Kiermaier, racing in at 29.5 feet per second, covered 89 feet and made a sliding snag just before the ball hit the turf. He then triumphantly raised his glove in the air as the former outfield mates smiled at one another.

“Yeah, I’ve seen that a lot,” said Rays manager Kevin Cash. “Funny how that plays out like that.”

Second baseman Brandon Lowe, Kiermaier’s teammate for five seasons, said it’s difficult to put into words the true value of the outfielder’s contributions to this team.

“The leadership that he brought here was something else. After the games, he made sure we were celebrating wins and made sure we didn’t stay down too long after losses. A lot of intangibles that he brought to the team that no one really ever knows about.

“It can’t be talked about enough how much he did for this team and how much he’ll be missed.”

Kiermaier wanted to get this first meeting against Tampa Bay out of the way during Spring Training, because the atmosphere is more relaxed and he can allow himself to chat with former teammates instead of being laser-focused on the upcoming game.

But when he returns to Tropicana Field for the first time during the regular season -- on May 22-25 -- Kiermaier knows those emotions are going to bubble up again. There will be many more fans ready to welcome him back, and he’ll be just as ready to embrace them as well.

“They gave me a tribute video last year. It meant the absolute world to me,” he said. “I don’t know what’s in store. ... But that will be a beautiful moment for me and my family, and it’ll mean a lot to me.

“It’s going to be a joy coming back here twice a year.”