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I wouldn't be opposed to the Astros' title being taken away, but MLB has never vacated a championship before, so they might be afraid of what kind of precedent it might send.

As far as the Red Sox go, what they did was defintiely wrong, but not nearly as bad as what the Astros were doing. The Red Sox were using the video replay room to figure out the sign sequence that the opposing catcher would use when a runner was on 2nd base, would let the players know, and then the baserunner would be the one to try to relay the sign to the batter while he was at 2nd base. Trying to steal, and relay, signs from the runner to the hitter is something that has been going on pretty much for all of baseball's history, but the use of technology is what makes it illegal here.

The Astros, on the other hand, had a monitor in the tunnel directly behind the dugout, and they would let the hitter know what was coming via banging on trashcans, and possibly through other means, whistling, whatever, directly after the sign came in. They did this pretty much throughout the entire game every home game the entire 2017 season, including the playoffs. There didn't need to be anyone on base for them to directly let the batter know what pitch was coming.

The hammer should definitely come down on Alex Cora though, seeing as he was involved in both scandals. I wouldn't even be surprised to see a lifetime ban come into play.
 
So now the Astros owner has now fired both Hinch and Luhnow.

Good. This is probably a lifetime ban for both of them, anyway, as no team will want to hire them.

As a Dodgers fan, it's particularly galling, because the Red Sox did it to them the following year too. Look for the Sox to face a similar punishment.

I'm no Dodgers fan and avidly rooted against them for both of those World Series, but I actually feel sorry for them. It was a great sight to see so many Dodgers fans apologizing to Yu Darvish after this cheating news broke out. The Dodgers are still a stacked team, and I'm sure they'll be in the playoffs for many years to come.
 
.. and now Beltran out with the Mets .. have to wonder how this might effect his HOF chances, he was always pretty borderline and him being respected throughout the game might have been what put him over the top
 
That now makes 3 teams currently without a manager and we're only about a month away from the start of spring training. Crazy.
 
What's the average rate of manager turnover in MLB?
I'd say probably around 4-5 are fired and replaced ever year. The crazy part is how deep we are into the off-season; the start of the new season is pretty much right around the corner. Also, the Mets had just hired Beltran as their new Manager at the start of Novemeber, and now he's already gone before he's had the chance to manage a single game in the MLB.
 
I'd say probably around 4-5 are fired and replaced ever year. The crazy part is how deep we are into the off-season; the start of the new season is pretty much right around the corner. Also, the Mets had just hired Beltran as their new Manager at the start of Novemeber, and now he's already gone before he's had the chance to manage a single game in the MLB.
Fair enough. These are exceptional circumstances, dealing with the biggest scandal in the game since the steroid scandal...which actually wasn't that long ago. There are a lot of scandals in baseball.
 
Ol' Rusty Dusty is the perfect choice for the Trashtros. He'll blow out the best pitchers' arms to win the AL West only to make a classic Dusty first round exit. On a related note, I can't wait to hear all the boos at Astros road games. Hell, probably at the home games, too.
 
Where are the Astros from?

I remember reading the world series ooooof... 1919? Was flat out bought... As far as I know the title wasn't removed. All those players on steroids? Their records are still in the books.
 
Where are the Astros from?

I remember reading the world series ooooof... 1919? Was flat out bought... As far as I know the title wasn't removed. All those players on steroids? Their records are still in the books.

They were always from Houston. They were formed in 1962 as the Colt .45s (a much better name) as an expansion team along with the New York Mets.

MLB has never stripped a title, unfortunately. The Astros and Red Sox got off far too lightly if you ask me. Everyone involved should have been banned for life, and in Beltran’s case, made ineligible for the Hall of Fame. The titles for 2017 and 2018 should also be stripped. There should be zero tolerance for this. Thankfully, many of those responsible have been fired or forcibly resigned, and will most likely not work in MLB again.

Sadly, the players involved are protected by a union so they cannot be fined or punished. Hopefully we’ll see some objects thrown at them over the course of the season, though.
 
Looks like the Mookie Betts to the Dodgers deal is now going to happen for real, which will easily make the Dodgers the favorites for the World Series this year, if they weren't already.
 
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