Wahhhhh ... they didn't punish them enough for my - the media's - liking. Wahhhhhhhh! Multiple ownership-level sources told ESPN that dissatisfaction with the penalties had emerged following a conference call with Manfred, in which he explained how the Astros would be disciplined, then told teams to keep their thoughts to themselves. "The impression," one person familiar with the call told ESPN, "was that the penalty for complaining would be more than Houston got." The concern over any possible discipline for breaking ranks didn't entirely silence teams. At 12:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, the Los Angeles Dodgers, who lost the 2017 World Series in seven games to an Astros team that MLB's investigation confirmed cheated during that postseason, released a statement that read: "All clubs have been asked by Major League Baseball not to comment on today's punishment of the Houston Astros as it's inappropriate to comment on discipline imposed on another club. The Dodgers have also been asked not to comment on any wrongdoing during the 2017 World Series and will have no further comment at this time." Run through a passive-aggressive translator, the Dodgers' words mirrored what a team president had said earlier in the day. "Crane won," he said. "The entire thing was programmed to protect the future of the franchise. He got his championship. He keeps his team. His fine is nothing. The sport lost, but Crane won." "Did you notice," another team president said, "he never said 'Sorry'?" Crane didn't, though it also took him six days to say the word to the Sports Illustrated reporter whom the organization tried to smear after she wrote how Taubman had gloated that he was "so f---ing glad we got Osuna," a reference to closer Roberto Osuna, who was acquired while still under a lengthy suspension for domestic violence. On Monday, Crane did apologize to fans, sponsors and the city of Houston. Not the teams the Astros beat while cheating or the sport his franchise's actions put in this position. Crane said he fired them because "(n)either one of them started this, but neither one of them did anything about it." The same, of course, could be said of him . Either Crane did not know that the business he owns and operates was cheating or he did know and did nothing about it. Neither is good. ... Hinch tried. In a statement, he apologized and acknowledged that he could've tried to do better -- to tell players and coaches to stop instead of breaking the video monitor twice in protest. He didn't. There wasn't much sympathy for Hinch's actions around baseball, but there was a willingness to forgive. Executives agreed: He'll manage again after being suspended through the end of this World Series. Like Crane, Luhnow apologized to the team, the fans and the city. He said in a statement, "I am not a cheater." That doesn't exactly square with the team he ran cheating during its championship-winning season and with the information in Manfred's report that "at least two emails sent to Luhnow" informed him of replay-review room sign decoding, about which he did nothing. Luhnow continued to try to clear himself of responsibility while blaming "players" and "low-level employees working with the bench coach." Considering his apparent affinity for throwing people under the bus, let us hope Luhnow's next career does not involve large motor vehicles. The rest of baseball is bracing for the fallout of the Astros' punishment, and most do believe one purpose was served: that Manfred's disciplinary choices will prompt the rank-and-file to avoid any sort of electronically aided sign-stealing schemes. "It will scare employees of MLB teams from cheating, at least for a while," one high-ranking executive said, "and the man who owns the team gets to enjoy his ring. He gets off lightly and can start with a clean slate." This refrain was common inside the game, and it came with a question that was rhetorical-but-not-really, one that illustrated how Jim Crane won the day that his franchise lost. How many owners in baseball would trade $5 million, four high draft picks and the firing of their GM and manager in exchange for a World Series title? Twenty-five? Twenty-eight? All 30? "I don't know that I would," one team president said, "but I don't know that I wouldn't." Whatever the answer, the remaining two mentions of Crane in Manfred's report do yeoman's work of clearing him. The first said it was "difficult to question" Crane giving Luhnow responsibility of baseball operations. The second stated, as fact, that Crane "was unaware of any of the violations of MLB rules by his club." And that was it. A thorough and impressive whitewashing. Tidy, clean, carefully orchestrated, meticulously calibrated. The Houston Astros, same as they ever were.
In all of the moral outrage, has anyone in the media pointed out that, if Alex Cora was the mastermind of this scheme, which was so effective that the Astros won the World Series in 2017, might the team he managed the next year, the Boston Red Sox, have done something similar when THEY WON THE WORLD SERIES IN 2018?! Or are we supposed to believe that Cora abandoned his cheating ways the second he stepped onto Yawkey Way?
Sometimes it’s like that when you have a motive/target and try to bend a story around it. If he doesn’t share the same feelings for Boston when their time comes then he should get blasted.
I've said it before, hang all the Astros you want, MLB, if you feel that's necessary to restore public faith in baseball, or whatever cobbled together excuse you come up with. But there had better be more heads in those nooses than just Astros. No, Cora by himself won't cut it. Draft picks and other penalties on Boston might.
The punishment is severe because the Astro’s dared be bold and brash. They seemed confident and unapologetic To the way things were done. It rubbed the stuffy nosed old guard the wrong way. They eliminated the over abundance of scouts. They streamlined everything into a formula, which they mastered. Jim Crane is an idiot. He accepted the narrative that’s the Astros don’t belong a top the baseball world.
An interesting ongoing storyline is the silence among hitters across the league. You've got plenty of pitchers like Bauer running their mouths, but I can't think of a single active hitter before Logan Morrison yesterday who has offered an opinion on this scandal. While it's fun to pile on the Astros at the moment, I'd opine that this is a giant clue to what is really going on in clubhouses across the league. It's a shame that Manfred seems eager to wipe his hands of this and not get to the bottom of everything.
Exactly. they’re not on trial for the Taubman incident, yet it somehow plays largely into his opinion. He’s insinuating that the owner should be asked to vacate his team? When has that ever happened?... or how would that legally even come to pass?
Passan has ALWAYS been this way. He is worth following because he has good connections. However he and others like Olney do not like the Astros because of how they have treated the media. From the Astros perspective the media was terrible to them when the Astros were rebuilding. I am laughing at Passan and Olney being stunned that Crane was exonerated and really doesn’t lose coming out of this. The commissioner answers to the owners. Of course Crane comes out of this the way he did. Hinch has to go after admitting he knew (although I do not find his story truthful) and Luhnow was going down no matter what. The owner gets protected in exchange for doing what the commissioner wants - Luhnow and Hinch gone. On a side note Buster Olney just said Hinch will get another job as a manager next year. Said multiple teams already have interest and is considered the best manager in baseball. That seems potentially a little naive, but the commissioners office did say kind things about Hinch.
They’re being very self-serving, vendetta-laden and their bias is palpable... not good characteristics in journalism. It’s likely both Hinch and Luhnow are working again eventually. That was the goal of this compromised sentence. There has been forgiveness for much worse deeds throughout sports history. There will also likely be a scandal or a person who eventually trumps this one.
Normally good? He’s always hating on the Astros. Where is the article about the Yankees and their domestic abuse giving players?
It's obvious that most of the pearl clutching is just for show. Anyone truly offended by this wouldn't touch Hinch. It sucks that the Houston fanbase will have to watch Hinch elsewhere and we will likely end up with a worse punishment than anyone involved.
This is very very interesting.... he seems to be saying the Yankees were doing it too thanks to Beltran
