Houston Astros

DaveB

DaveB

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 3, 2008
Messages
17,412
Reaction score
4,932
Location
Shelby County
Well they got caught using instant replay to steal signs even after the Commish warned the entire MLB they were gonna get their testicles removed if caught stealing signs.

Not only were the exec's knowingly allowing or encouraging this behavior the team member s were all well aware of what they were doing-including hiding monitors and participating in the cheating. AJ Hinch KNEW what was going on and DID NOT attempt to stop it.

SO far no game scores are being re-done and the Astros can keep their WS ring.

When you watch some of the sign stealing in real time you can see the Astro batters were NOT swinging at pitches that they knew were going to break and go off the plate. Amazing. How many careers did the Astros impact with their cheating? I hope the Owner immediately renegotiates the contract of every player and makes them pay for their actions.

Remember how Foltynevich was pitching against St Louis and they stood and never lifted the bat except when they knew he was gonna throw something over the plate? Folty got hammered for 7 or 8 runs in the first inning, walked 4 or something? He had to be tipping his pitch or the replay cameras were
in play. And I am a Cards fan.
 
That doesn't really surprise me at all.
Too much technology around these days.

Only MLB game I have ever been to in my life was the Astros against the Cards.
The cards won. :D

That was in like 1991 or so.
 
I assumed this had all gone by the wayside. interested to see what happens to Cora.
I have to admit after the 2018 season I pretty well decided to give up on MLB. Long story but I've been a dodgers fan since high school. Even with them being more of a "national/big city" team I just think it's too tough to keep up with teams if you don't live in their market. Too much else occupying my time. Anyway I can't help but wonder if things might have turned out differently in 17 & 18 but that's not the point here.

It seems like baseball can't get out of its own way nowadays.
 
We go every year to watch the Braves and the Cards.

The instant replay cameras were installed to correct the errors made by the umpires and they put no parameters on their use. So here they are with technology that can freeze frame and someone decided they could see the catcher's signals pretty clearly, gee, no kiddin'.

Now, what are teams who lost to Houston cheating going to do? Or players DFA'd, contracts/bonuses cancelled? I wonder if Bregman's MVP award for 2018 will be challenged, it should be, they cheated all of 2018.

I suspect there is going to be a lot of job openings in various teams around the country.

Watch for brawls all year long as Houston plays anyone.
 
Stealing signs is part of the game. Using today's technology is a relatively new wrinkle. In the grand scheme of things, the athletes still have to execute. I don't see it as a huge deal overall.
 
The trouble the Astros got in isn't enough to make teams stop doing it.
 
CBU93":1oe9g4el said:
Stealing signs is part of the game. Using today's technology is a relatively new wrinkle. In the grand scheme of things, the athletes still have to execute. I don't see it as a huge deal overall.
Click to expand...

Exactly, I remember sitting in the dugout when we weren't batting, we all were trying to pick up on indicators and stuff lol just part of it.
 
CBU93":2qy67973 said:
Stealing signs is part of the game. Using today's technology is a relatively new wrinkle. In the grand scheme of things, the athletes still have to execute. I don't see it as a huge deal overall.
Click to expand...
I would think knowing what every pitch was going to be would be a huge advantage over guessing?
 
You could know a curveball or slider is coming every time still don't mean your gonna touch the thing. They didn't make it to that level just by luck alone.
 
CBU93":zma6ph41 said:
Stealing signs is part of the game. Using today's technology is a relatively new wrinkle. In the grand scheme of things, the athletes still have to execute. I don't see it as a huge deal overall.
Click to expand...

Absolutely part of the game trying to do it real time with no technology. Using freeze frame cameras is a whole other thing. Kind of like aluminum bats. The technology of aluminum bats has no place in MLB in my mind. Wish they were wooden at every level. Guess I am a purest.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Just like every other sport, if you aren't cheating, you aren't trying.

I mean when you have parent's faking birth certificates so their kid can "win" at kid's sports, high school "recruiting", college athletes and booster hand$hake$, to the professional level of officials on the take, blah, blah, blah; nothing surprises me anymore.

I'd be willing to bet that they weren't the only team.

I do find it odd that no one caught on to the garbage can though!

Media reports alleged the Astros stole signs using a camera fixated on the catcher's signs, a monitor with a live feed in the tunnel between the dugout and the clubhouse, and by banging nearby garbage cans to relay the signs to the hitter. MLB's investigation found the sign-stealing scheme evolved over time. Here's the timeline:

2016 season: MLB's investigation did "not reveal any other scheme or method utilized by the Astros" to steal signs.

Early 2017: The center field feed was used to decode signs when the Astros had a runner on second base. Once decoded, the sequence would be relayed to the dugout, and the runner at second would decode the signs and signal to the hitter at the plate.

Two months into 2017: The garbage can method was implemented and the team began to pump a live feed to a new monitor in the tunnel. The Astros initially tried whistling and clapping before settling on the garbage can. The scheme is called "player-driven," with current Mets manager Carlos Beltran mentioned by name. Both systems were used throughout the 2017 season.

Postseason 2017: Manfred's report says the club continued using their systems to steal signs during the postseason, even after all 30 clubs were warned that September to not use electronics improperly to steal signs.

Prior to 2018: With MLB's approval, the Astros relocated their video room to a room closer to the dugout at Minute Maid Park, to a location similar to ballparks around the league.
2018 season: The Astros continued to use their video room to decode signs and relay them to the dugout. At some point during the season they stopped decoding signs "because the players no longer believed it was effective."

2018 postseason: MLB's investigation uncovered no evidence the Astros used electronic equipment to decode signs during the 2018 postseason.

2019 season: MLB's investigation "revealed no violations" during the 2019 regular season or postseason.
Long story short, the investigation revealed the Astros illegally used electronics to steal signs throughout the 2017 regular season and postseason, and also early in 2018. The report indicates the cheating starts and ends there.

The first time I ever encountered stealing of signs was when my oldest daughter was playing softball at 10U. She threw hard, but was also working on a change-up, so we had two signs. Not real hard to figure out.

We were playing a tournament, and working the change-up some, when one of the coaches from the other team started yelling, "Here comes the change-up", after I gave my sign.

So, I stopped calling it, and before going out on defense the next inning, I told my daughter and the catcher that we were going to reverse the signs.

So, I gave the normal sign for changeup, and sure enough, genius coach yells it out. The batter was frozen as the fastball popped the mitt. She stepped out of the box, turned toward the dugout, and SCREAMED, " STOP DOING THAT!" That ended that :D !
 
Using your eyes and experience to pick up what a pitcher is going to throw is one thing. Using a very highspeed very high quality camera to look at the catcher's signals and pass that info to the bench then to the batter is something else.

Cora will be gone from Bosox and baseball at least a year. No problem here if he is out 5 years. He was warned.

As a baseball fan since age 8 I am very disappointed that Houston chose to cheat in order to win.

The analyst breakdown of Houston batters clearly aware of what was coming is disturbing. Altuve will never be in the HOF. Same for Bregman. They cheated.
 
Yes, some Major League player is naming teams and what they were doing....I cannot find it, it was on Foxnews.com.

And yes, individual cheats have always been around and that does not make it right.

This was the team-even players were directly involved in the cheating. Hinch is a real letdown.
 
IS anyone really surprised???

This has been going on is some form or fashion from the beginning of the game. Im sure it started with Binoculars then to spotting scopes and now to cameras.

You always see College and NFL coaches on the sidelines covering their mouths because they know the other teams hire lip readers to catch chit chat.

Im sure they work hard at keeping their headsets coded and frequencies private and changed frequently to avoid corruption.
 
iowavf":3p97me03 said:
CBU93":3p97me03 said:
Stealing signs is part of the game. Using today's technology is a relatively new wrinkle. In the grand scheme of things, the athletes still have to execute. I don't see it as a huge deal overall.
Click to expand...
I would think knowing what every pitch was going to be would be a huge advantage over guessing?
Click to expand...

And you would be correct.....huge advantage knowing if a pitch was going to be inside, outside, breaking ball, fast ball.... knowing verses guessing.... absolutely an advantage.....and yes trying to steal signs has been around from the beginning....but this level of ability to steal signs hasn't been seen before.....if both teams were using the same technology to steal signs then maybe not a big deal....but apparently that's not the case.

Am I surprised....sadly no
Disappointed....extremely
As a baseball fan it's frustrating.
 
College softball has gone to 3 or 4 digit codes with the pitcher and catcher having armbands containing a list to see what pitch the code represents. They change the code sheets every inning or so.

I guess if a catcher is calling his own game it would work also.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
Alex Cora and the Bosox have parted ways. The end was at hand for Cora and whether Management or Cora initiated the exit, it was definitely going to happen when the report comes out and Cora is suspended from the game for at least a year I am estimating 5 years.

Now, will Beltran stay on as Mets Manager? His reckoning will be this week.
 
There's always been cheating in baseball and this is nothing new. Not a news flash until the news makes a big deal out of it. Kind of like foreign countries interfering in elections, been happening forever but somehow it's something new since it's being reported???

Stealing signs, corking bats, scuffing balls, and putting substances on your fingers have always been part of the game but much easier now with technology. Heck they even allow you to "steal bases"..... :rotf:
 

Latest posts

Back
Top