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Astros Sign-Stealing Scandal

MLBPA Issues Statement On Investigation Into Astros

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Weeks ago, Major League Baseball levied serious punishment against the Astros as a result of their sign-stealing scheme. The league suspended GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch for a year apiece (they’ve since been fired), took away first- and second-round draft picks in each of the next two years and fined the franchise the maximum amount of $5MM. MLB did not drop the hammer on any Astros players, however, even though many were instrumental in the scandal.

[RELATED: How MLB, Astros Dug Their Own Hole]

Commissioner Rob Manfred spoke about the lack of discipline for Houston’s players this past weekend. Manfred argued that the players weren’t properly informed of the rules, so had the league come down on them, it likely would have led to “grievances and grievances that we were going to lose.” Indeed, as Evan Drellich of The Athletic explained this week (subscription required), MLB wouldn’t really have had a leg to stand on from a legal standpoint. With that in mind, Manfred & Co. decided to unleash their wrath only on the Astros organization and their higher-ups. Nevertheless, the MLBPA made clear Tuesday that it has fully cooperated with the league in regards to Houston’s misdeeds.

As part of a lengthy statement (all of which is available here via Drellich), the union said:

“The day after The Athletic published its Nov. 12 article, Major League Baseball informed the Players Association it would be conducting an investigation, and that it would want to interview players as a part of that investigation. MLB said from the outset that it was not its intention to discipline players. This was not surprising because the applicable rules did not allow for player discipline, because even if they did players were never notified of the rules to begin with, and because in past cases involving electronic sign stealing MLB had stated that Club personnel were responsible for ensuring compliance with the rules.

Against this backdrop, the Association on Nov. 13 sought and received confirmation from the league that the players interviewed and any other players would not be disciplined in connection with the allegations made in the article. We received that confirmation promptly on the evening of Nov. 13, and the player interviews began days later.

Any suggestion that the Association failed to cooperate with the Commissioner’s investigation, obstructed the investigation, or otherwise took positions which led to a stalemate in the investigation is completely untrue. We acted to protect the rights of our members, as is our obligation under the law.”

The union added that it and the league have recently engaged in “regular dialogue on potential rule changes affecting sign stealing, in-game technology and video, data access and usage, Club audits and disclosures, player education and enforcement – including the potential for player discipline.” According to the MLBPA, “no issue is off the table, including player discipline,” and the way “the parties handle the next several weeks will significantly affect what our game looks like for the next several decades.”

The current collective bargaining agreement is set to expire after the 2021 season. Therefore, how the league deals with the Astros’ crimes going forward could ultimately factor into whether a work stoppage takes place in the near future.

MLBTR Poll: Stripping The Astros’ 2017 Title

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It doesn’t take a die-hard baseball fan to know the past few weeks have been an utter nightmare for the Astros. The club was among the game’s elite from 2017-19, but its accomplishments from that span are now in question as a result of a sign-stealing scheme. That scandal has forced major changes in the front office and in the dugout, with the Astros having let go of suspended GM Jeff Luhnow and A.J. Hinch in favor of James Click and Dusty Baker, respectively. At their most successful, Luhnow and Hinch oversaw the Astros’ first-ever World Series-winning team in 2017. But that seven-game victory over the Dodgers is now tarnished in the eyes of many around the game.

Dodgers outfielder Cody Bellinger, a member of the 2017 runners-up and the reigning NL MVP, went so far as to declare last week that the Astros “stole” a championship from him and his teammates. However, Major League Baseball did not formally strip the Astros of the title they won (it obviously would have been a drastic measure for MLB), and commissioner Rob Manfred explained why over the weekend.

“First of all, it had never happened in baseball,” Manfred said.  “I am a precedent guy.  The 2017 World Series will always be looked at as different, whether not you put an asterisk or ask for the trophy back.  Once you go down that road as for changing the result on the field, I just don’t know where you stop.”

Manfred went on to state, “The idea of an asterisk or asking for a piece of metal back seems like a futile act.” That didn’t sit well with one of Bellinger’s teammates and another member of the Dodgers’ 2017 team, Justin Turner. The third baseman fired back that Manfred set “a weak precedent” with his punishment of the Astros, continuing: “For him to devalue [the trophy] the way he did yesterday just tells me how out of touch he is with the players in this game. At this point, the only thing devaluing that trophy is that it says ’Commissioner’ on it.”

“Now anyone who goes forward and cheats to win a World Series,” Turner added (via Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times), “they can live with themselves knowing that, ’Oh, it’s OK. … We’ll cheat in the World Series and bring the title back to L.A. Screw [manager] Dave Roberts and screw [general manager] Andrew [Friedman]. It’s just those guys losing their jobs. I still get to be called a champion the rest of my life.’ So the precedent was set by him yesterday in this case.”

Strong comments, to say the least. Which side are you on here? Would Manfred have gone too far in taking away the Astros’ championship?

(Poll link for app users)

Mike Trout, Justin Turner Offer Strong Opinions On Astros Scandal

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Some may have scandal fatigue, but there are good reasons this one isn’t dying a quick death: the high level of anger from rival players and a still-running string of questionable statements and (non-)actions from those in positions of power. Today’s comments from two prominent, respected players — Mike Trout and Justin Turner — served to highlight those points and ensure we’ll see further rounds in this controversy.

Trout, the best player the game has seen in quite some time, is reserved to the point that he was once publicly chastised by commissioner Rob Manfred for not making himself marketable. How’d he respond to Manfred? “Everything is cool between the commissioner and myself.” Suffice to say he’s not easily ruffled.

It was rather remarkable, then, to see Trout unleash some venom in comments to reporters regarding the Astros’ sign-stealing escapades. As Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register was among those to cover, Trout said not only that he “lost some respect” for certain Astros players, but also that he did not “agree with the punishments” meted out by Manfred. In particular, Trout was not pleased that players were not punished for their misdeeds.

Trout’s comments stand out less for their content — we’ve heard similar sentiments from many others — than for the speaker. Many of the game’s other very best players have reacted similarly, but it’s rather different to hear those words come from Trout, who rarely expresses a public opinion on much of anything and seems destined not only for Cooperstown but a place on a very short list of the game’s greatest-ever players.

Then came Justin Turner, whose words stood out because they landed direct hits on Manfred. We’ve seen some other challenges to the commissioner — from Trevor Bauer, for instance — but Turner was responding especially to Manfred’s interview yesterday in which he attempted to defend his handling of the crisis. Lending added weight is the fact that Turner earned his veteran standing through years of grinding.

Turner directly contested several of Manfred’s points. The commissioner called himself “a precedent guy” in explaining why he didn’t want to strip a team of a title for the first time. Turner employed a tidy bit of legal jujutsu on that point, observing that this was a novel issue on which Manfred “just set the precedent” — “a weak precedent.” Similarly, Turner challenged Manfred’s explanation that he had prioritized ascertaining and publicizing the truth of the underlying matter. Per Turner, players are frustrated in large part because “the commissioner didn’t do a good job of revealing all the facts to us.”

The elbow drop was set up by Manfred’s ill-conceived characterization of the World Series trophy as “a piece of metal.” Per Turner: “For him to devalue [the trophy] the way he did yesterday just tells me how out of touch he is with the players in this game. At this point, the only thing devaluing that trophy is that it says ’Commissioner’ on it.”

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