Old wounds were re-opened for Los Angeles Dodgers players this offseason as the Houston Astros were found guilty of electronically stealing signs during the 2017 season.
MLB handed down punishments that included a $5 million fine, loss of draft picks and suspensions for manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow, who were then fired by Astros owner Jim Crane. They were not required to vacated the championship that they won by defeating the Dodgers in the World Series, however, and none of the players were suspended for their actions.
Since the news came out, Astros players have had plenty of opportunities to apologize and show remorse for their actions, but to this point have not. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman recently questioned why they have not done so, and his thoughts were echoed by Clayton Kershaw.
Kershaw was heavily involved in that World Series, of course, winning Game 1 at Dodger Stadium before getting roughed up in Game 5 at Minute Maid Park, where it has since come to light the Astros knew every pitch that was coming.
In addition to the loss, the legacy of perhaps the greatest pitcher of his generation took a hit that night. Learning the Astros were cheating isn’t easy for Kershaw to accept, but there’s confidence he and the Dodgers will quickly put the matter behind them.
“I think we can focus on it now for as long as we can, think about it, and then once Spring Training rolls around, hopefully we can get rid of it and move on,” Kershaw said at the fifth annual Justin Turner Golf Classic.
“I tried to move on in ’17, and I thought I did a decent job of that, and having to relive it all is no fun. I have thought about it. But at the same time, I can’t change it, and we’re not going to win no matter what, so, just going to move on.
“Maybe the silver lining is this did happen in the offseason and we can have time to digest it, think about it and marinate in it. Feel what we’re going to feel, then once Spring Training rolls around, we can kind of move past it. I think now everybody has at least had a chance to talk about it, and we feel at peace with where we’re at and move on.”
The L.A. City Council recently voted to have MLB strip the Astros of their championship and award it to the Dodgers. Commissioner Rob Manfred made it clear he is not going to do that, which falls in line with a sentiment shared by several Dodgers players.
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