“He did that sh*t guilty as f*ck”
-Kanan, Power
The Red Sox are in hot water after MLB investigators discovered the team used Apple watches to steal signals during a series with the Yankees. Stealing signs is common place in baseball, however the tactics used by the Red Sox seem to be more egregious beyond binoculars and hand signals. Here are the details via the New York Times.
Investigators for Major League Baseball have determined that the Boston Red Sox, who are in first place in the American League East and likely headed to the playoffs, executed a scheme to illicitly steal hand signals from opponents’ catchers in games against the second-place Yankees and other teams, according to several people briefed on the matter.
The baseball inquiry began about two weeks ago, after the Yankees’ general manager, Brian Cashman, filed a detailed complaint with the commissioner’s office that included video the Yankees shot of the Red Sox dugout during a three-game series in Boston last month. The Red Sox responded in kind on Tuesday, filing a complaint against the Yankees, claiming that the team uses a camera from its television network, YES, exclusively to steal signs during games.
It is unclear what penalties, if any, Commissioner Rob Manfred will issue against the Red Sox and whether he will order a more expansive investigation to determine the extent of the Red Sox’ sign-stealing system. It is also unclear how he will proceed with the countercomplaint.
Stealing signs is among the many “unwritten rules” in baseball. Major League Baseball does not prohibit stealing signs, but the use of technology to accomplish this crosses over into dangerous terrain. Stealing signs impacts the game in several ways beyond pitches & location. Signs also dictate sending runners and pickoff attempts. Here are examples of how the signal theft played out in the Red Sox favor.
In the first game of the series in question, the first time the Red Sox got a runner on second was Xander Bogaerts, in the second inning. Rafael Devers promptly hit a home run, giving the Red Sox a 2-0 lead. The Red Sox went 5 for 8 in the first game when they had a man on second. Their success when they had a runner on second in the other two games was mixed: 1 for 6 in the second game; and 3 for 10 in the third game.
The video provided to the commissioner’s office by the Yankees was captured during the first two games of the series and included at least three clips. In the clips, the team’s assistant athletic trainer, Jon Jochim, is seen looking at his Apple Watch and then passing information to outfielder Brock Holt and second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who was injured at the time but in uniform. In one instance, Pedroia is then seen passing the information to Young.
Add yet another wrinkle to the Red Sox-Yankees All-time rivalry. The Yankees are 2.5 games behind Boston in the AL East standings. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred faces a crucial decision in determining a punishment which isn’t too lenient while not coming off as a Roger Goodell level dictator.