The 2017 World Series is one that will live in infamy from here on out as the Houston Astros defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in a seven-game, all-time classic, but it has since been revealed they may have been stealing signs electronically.
Major League Baseball is currently investigating the matter, but since the first report, videos have surfaced of the Astros appearing to steal signs and relay throughout the 2017 season. They used a system that includes a camera in center field to pick up catchers’ signs, and they would either bang on a trash can or whistle to signal to the batter what pitch is coming.
It was originally unclear if the sign-stealing bled into the playoffs, but there has since been clear videos of it during Game 5 of the World Series when Clayton Kershaw squandered two crucial leads and Los Angeles wound up losing 13-12 in 10 innings.
MLB has not yet announced what punishments will be handed down to the Astros because the investigation is still ongoing, but if found guilty, and the evidence is as clear as day, the repercussions will likely be serious.
The Dodgers were one of the teams affected most by the Astros cheating, of course. But the series took place two years ago, so while Joc Pederson is disappointed, he realizes that there is nothing that can be done to fix it now, via David Vassegh of AM 570 L.A. Sports:
“Say you strip them of a World Series title and gave the Dodgers a World Series title, it’s not like there would be parade. You wouldn’t really celebrate. I don’t know. It’s over with. They got away with something and that’s just the way it goes. … It doesn’t make it any easier, and it just brings those same feelings of getting over something that you worked so hard for as a team, and it was just taken from you is tough. What are you going to do? It’s over with.”
If the Dodgers were to win that series then Pederson likely would have been the MVP. He came up with a number of big hits, batting .333/.400/.944 with three home runs, six runs scored and five RBI in six games.
The Dodgers head into 2020 still without a World Series trophy since 1988, and they presumably will be as motivated as ever to end the franchise’s drought.
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