“At that point in time, sign stealing was utilized as a competitive tool by numerous teams throughout Major League Baseball and only became illegal after the Commissioner’s specific delineation of the rules on September 15, 2017,” the Yankees said in a statement on Tuesday, later adding that they have had “no infractions or violations” since.
The 2022 M.L.B. Season
A season that was in doubt is suddenly in full gear.
- Musical Chairs: In a series of unexpected off-season moves, franchise icons for the Dodgers and the Braves swapped places — even though neither seemed to want to leave.
- Guardians of the Past: Cleveland changed its name, acknowledging the widespread belief that it was racist. Some fans are struggling to move on.
- Call Her Manager: Rachel Balkovec is the first woman to manage a team in affiliated baseball. Her players know who is in charge.
- Six Outs From Perfection: Could you pull a pitcher who was six outs from a perfect game? Would you? Dave Roberts has done it twice.
That day, Manfred sent a memorandum to all 30 teams warning them about illegal sign-stealing and stating that club management, not players, would be held accountable for any such cheating. In March 2018, M.L.B. sent another memorandum to teams that made clear that replay rooms and video feeds were not allowed to be used for stealing signs during games.
(M.L.B. has since taken further steps to try to curb such behavior.)
This where the Yankees’ story, though, veers from those of the Astros and the Red Sox.
The Astros were found, according to a M.L.B. investigation released in January 2020, to have employed a scheme through the 2017 playoffs and for at least part of the 2018 season that involved using cameras and monitors to decode opposing teams’ signs and tip off Houston’s batters, often by banging on a trash can just outside the dugout.