[dimarco73]

The Astros players and soon the Red Sox (once that investigation is over) are going to have a rough road.
Already other MLB players especially pitchers are putting them on blast.
I think they have lost a lot of respect among MLB players

Its one thing for players and or coaches to decipher and steal signs on the field or bench which is part of the game. But using devices or staff with cameras, phones, monitors and relaying it to the batter....thats just outright cheating.
Largely due to the fact that it is a huge advantage to the batter to know off speed or fastball. HUGE!!

What I find a bit off, is exactly how can they relay a message to the batter so quickly.
Catcher put fingers down and within 2 or 3 seconds the pitch is coming.
There are only 2 possibilities to pull that off. Guy watching a video in the dugout and making noise immediately after seeing the sign on the video ....or guy in clubhouse or upstairs relaying electronically directly to batter.
Its just not enough time to pass to multiple people then the batter. Not enough time.

And if they were wearing electronic devices, wouldn't a writer or press member have seen something as these guys are changing in the locker room? There are press people all over the place....there is just to much missing still for a complete understanding of what was going on.
MLB may say it was thorough but that all depends on the honesty and forthcoming of the people they were talking to.

[hempick]

MLB may say it was thorough but that all depends on the honesty and forthcoming of the people they were talking to.

I'm suspicious about that, too.

We know some players lied already (Beltran).

We also know that the MLB was tipped off about this issue back in 2017 and did nothing about it UNTIL Fiers' claim.

Players lied. MLB lied.

There is much more to this than we know right now.

[jaredhuizenga]

Man, the more I watch that video of Altuve during his walk off HR against the Yankees, the more pissed off I get! I hate cheating in baseball with a seething passion! Honestly, Im not a huge fan of the Twins making Nelson Cruz and Jorge Polanco the faces of the franchise. I can only hope they have repented. LOL

From a baseball card collector's standpoint, I had the 2011 Topps Update Altuve RC as one of my "must have" cards for my collection. Now, all I want to do is trade it for a stack of 1988 Topps commons.... Not really, but Grrrrrr!

But if he was cheating, at least there's a silver lining ... he was cheating against the Yankees.

[y2hood]

Looks like I made a good decision easing back on baseball after Frank Thomas retired.

[DrMitchJ]

But if he was cheating, at least there's a silver lining ... he was cheating against the Yankees.

Ow! That was quite a punch in the gut, ol'pal!

But all kidding aside ... in my opinion, this is worse than the Black Sox scandal. 2017 WS was stolen from either the Yankees or the Dodgers.
This is worse than the PED players scandal, too!

This affected everyone in the end ... small sample ... did Luis Severino really have a bad playoff appearance in 2017?
How many games did the Astros win against the Yankees at home vs away?
How skewed is Gerrit Cole's actual numbers? How much should the cheating Astros subsidize the Yankees if Cole doesn't go 11-0 by the All-Star break?

I fully believe that the 2017 Astros punishment is not enough.
1) they should be stripped of the 2017 WS title and stripped of the AL Pennant
2) The Dodgers should be awarded the WS title and the pick of any one player they want from the Astros' active roster ... free & paid for by the Astros
3) The Yankees should be awarded the 2017 AL Pennant and the pick of any one player they want from the Astros' active roster ... free & paid for by the Astros
4) Every AL team should be awarded The Astros #1 Draft pick each year until they all got compensated.
5) fine them up the wazoo... $5 million ain't no big thing ... $500 million might make other clubs think twice before messing around.
6) The fans / season ticket holders should be refunded.

I'm done ... for now ( and I didn't curse once )

[kerryandbeth]

Ow! That was quite a punch in the gut, ol'pal!

But all kidding aside ... in my opinion, this is worse than the Black Sox scandal. 2017 WS was stolen from either the Yankees or the Dodgers.
This is worse than the PED players scandal, too!

This affected everyone in the end ... small sample ... did Luis Severino really have a bad playoff appearance in 2017?
How many games did the Astros win against the Yankees at home vs away?
How skewed is Gerrit Cole's actual numbers? How much should the cheating Astros subsidize the Yankees if Cole doesn't go 11-0 by the All-Star break?

I fully believe that the 2017 Astros punishment is not enough.
1) they should be stripped of the 2017 WS title and stripped of the AL Pennant
2) The Dodgers should be awarded the WS title and the pick of any one player they want from the Astros' active roster ... free & paid for by the Astros
3) The Yankees should be awarded the 2017 AL Pennant and the pick of any one player they want from the Astros' active roster ... free & paid for by the Astros
4) Every AL team should be awarded The Astros #1 Draft pick each year until they all got compensated.
5) fine them up the wazoo... $5 million ain't no big thing ... $500 million might make other clubs think twice before messing around.
6) The fans / season ticket holders should be refunded.

I'm done ... for now ( and I didn't curse once )

Wow! Bitter?
Even serial killers suffer a lesser sentence.

[dimarco73]

"I fully believe that the 2017 Astros punishment is not enough.
1) they should be stripped of the 2017 WS title and stripped of the AL Pennant
2) The Dodgers should be awarded the WS title and the pick of any one player they want from the Astros' active roster ... free & paid for by the Astros
3) The Yankees should be awarded the 2017 AL Pennant and the pick of any one player they want from the Astros' active roster ... free & paid for by the Astros
4) Every AL team should be awarded The Astros #1 Draft pick each year until they all got compensated.
5) fine them up the wazoo... $5 million ain't no big thing ... $500 million might make other clubs think twice before messing around.
6) The fans / season ticket holders should be refunded."


WHoa! That is heavy. How about just suspend every player that is found to have played a part in the scheme for a full year. That's a butt load of salary lost for the players, a full year lost of time and stats. And basically creates a lost season to the Astros.
The team loses a full year of service time to their core and players that are up for FA lose the benefit of a productive season going into the off season.
It's a major hit for everyone involved but certainly is a just punishment for a team accused of cheating and winning 2 ALCS championships and a WS in that time.

[DrMitchJ]

Wow! Bitter?
Even serial killers suffer a lesser sentence.

Maybe a little, but this had an effect on everyone that faced them at home. 81 regular season home games were not truly fair competitions. Post Season was a joke, in retrospect.
If Shoeless Joe Jackson is still being punished for all eternity for his (non-compliant) role in 1913, then I don't think my punishment is too harsh. After about 15 years the Astros would start getting 1st round draft picks back. There is an end to the sentencing terms.

---

WHoa! That is heavy. How about just suspend every player that is found to have played a part in the scheme for a full year. That's a butt load of salary lost for the players, a full year lost of time and stats. And basically creates a lost season to the Astros.
The team loses a full year of service time to their core and players that are up for FA lose the benefit of a productive season going into the off season.
It's a major hit for everyone involved but certainly is a just punishment for a team accused of cheating and winning 2 ALCS championships and a WS in that time.

Heck yeah, heavy!
There are players that have moved onto other teams and suspending them will only punish the wrong team. The organization needs to be punished ... they need to have a season or two or three ... like my Marlins ... that will humble them a little. The cheater players will play the upcoming season without the unfair advantage they had, and if they suck this year, everyone will know it and act accordingly. If someone sucks after a 1 year layoff, they can blame the suspension. If they suck without the benefit of cheating ... then free market value will decide.

[jbissell]

I definitely agree with Doc's sentiment.

[mgruber2]

I put this right up there with PED users.