In an interview with MLB Network’s Tom Verducci, former Astros manager AJ Hinch made his first public comments since his dismissal last month as a result of Major League Baseball’s investigation into illegal sign-stealing by the club. The entire interview will air Friday at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network,
In an interview with MLB Network’s Tom Verducci, former Astros manager AJ Hinch made his first public comments since his dismissal last month as a result of Major League Baseball’s investigation into illegal sign-stealing by the club.
The entire interview will air Friday at 6 p.m. ET on MLB Network, but in a preview that aired on Thursday, Hinch addressed the repercussions of the scandal, which included a suspension for the 2020 season for both him and GM Jeff Luhnow, a maximum allowable $5 million fine for the club and the forfeiture of first- and second-round picks in the MLB Draft both this season and next. Astros owner Jim Crane subsequently dismissed both Hinch and Luhnow.
But perhaps the most damaging repercussion is the questioning of the legitimacy of Houston's 2017 World Series championship.
"It's a fair question," Hinch said. "I think everyone is going to have to draw their own conclusions [as to whether the championship is tainted]. I hope over time and the demonstration of the talent of this team and the players and the careers that are being had -- we have some of the best players in the entire sport all together on the same team -- I hope over time it's proven that it wasn't [tainted]. But I understand the question ... Unfortunately we opened that door as a group, and that question may never be answered. We may never know.
"We're going to have to live and move forward and be better in this sport, but unfortunately no one can really answer that question. I can't really pinpoint what advantages or what happened or what exactly would have happened otherwise, but we did it to ourselves."
MLB opened the investigation last November after Athletics pitcher Mike Fiers, who was on that 2017 Astros team, told The Athletic that Houston was engaged in an illegal sign-stealing operation throughout that season, including the postseason. He said signs were detected using a camera positioned beyond the outfield wall, and were relayed to the batter by someone banging on a trash can situated somewhere between the dugout and clubhouse.
Alex Cora, who was a bench coach for the Astros in 2017, was found to have been involved in setting up the sign-stealing system. He later became the manager of the Red Sox, who won the '18 World Series with Cora at the helm. There is a separate, ongoing investigation into allegations that Boston also illegally stole signs during that season. The Red Sox dismissed Cora shortly after the Astros investigation findings were released.
No players received penalties, but Carlos Beltrán, whom the Mets hired earlier this offseason as their new manager and was a player on the '17 Astros team, was dismissed before ever managing a game. He was named in the report as one of the players involved in the sign-stealing.
On Jan. 29, the Astros hired Dusty Baker to be their new manager. Baker has extensive experience in the role, having managed the Giants (1993-2002), Cubs (2003-06), Reds (2008-13) and Nationals (2016-17). Earlier this week, the Astros hired James Click from the Rays organization as their new GM.
Manny Randhawa is a reporter for MLB.com based in Denver. Follow him on Twitter at @MannyOnMLB.
"network" - Google News
February 07, 2020 at 07:56AM
https://ift.tt/39g5LSk
Hinch talks '17 Astros in MLB Network interview - MLB.com
"network" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2v9ojEM
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
No comments:
Post a Comment