In November, an Athletic report described a scheme by the 2017 Astros to illicitly steal signs from opposing pitchers during their World Series–winning season. On January 13, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred released a summary of the findings of the league’s ensuing investigation, as well as details about the first round of punishment for the people held responsible. Astros GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch each received one-season suspensions, and team owner Jim Crane fired them both soon after the announcement. With the 2018 Red Sox under investigation for a similar sign-stealing operation, more punishments are likely soon to follow. Find The Ringer’s coverage and analysis of the unfolding story here.
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Ringer Coverage of the MLB Sign-Stealing Controversy
Collected news and analysis of the continuing fallout from the cheating scandal surrounding the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox
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April 22, 2020
MLB’s Sign-Stealing Scandal Ends Not With a Bang, but a Whimper
Rob Manfred’s report on the Red Sox pins their entire scheme on a rogue video operator. The investigation raises further questions—and puts a tidy bow on the controversy that once seemed to threaten baseball’s future.
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March 9, 2020
Has the Astros Scandal Changed How We Think of Yu Darvish and Clayton Kershaw?
For Darvish, his starts in the 2017 World Series were among the worst of his career. For Kershaw, the series was another knock on his questionable postseason résumé. But does the revelation that the Astros were stealing signs affect any of that?
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March 4, 2020
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Astros Cheating Scandal
As we prepare to preview the 2020 season, we recap the biggest story of the offseason
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February 27, 2020
How Teams Tried to Counter the Astros’ Sign Stealing Before MLB Did
A deep dive into Houston’s at-bats shows that teams may have gone to elaborate lengths to thwart the team’s scheme
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February 26, 2020
Counterpoint: The Astros’ Sign-Stealing Scandal Is Actually Good for Baseball
Houston’s trash-can-banging scheme has brought controversy, shame, and villainy to MLB. It’s also the sport’s most successful marketing campaign in years.
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February 24, 2020
The Astros’ Trash-Can Cheating Scheme Is a Window Onto Human Nature
We did a strange thing when we created professional sports: We invented what is essentially a perfect machine to turn people into cheaters. Then we decided to trust that machine with all our highest ideals of fair play, justice, and integrity.
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February 20, 2020
The Astros Cheating Saga and 2020 Oscar Movies With Adnan Virk
Adnan Virk joins Russillo to discuss the Astros sign-stealing scandal, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred, the Oscars, and more
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February 19, 2020
The Anti-Astros Sign-Stealing Big Mad Player Rankings
MLB’s biggest names are united in their anger against Houston. Whose comments have been the most scathing?
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February 19, 2020
There Is No Tidy Solution to the MLB Sign-Stealing Scandal Anymore
To try to avoid a blowup of steroid-era proportions, Rob Manfred and Co. levied punishments against the Astros that were supposed to wrap the scandal up neatly. Instead, though, things are only getting messier.
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February 18, 2020
Does José Altuve’s Bad Tattoo Explain His ALCS Home Run Celebration? A Ringer Investigation.
The ink on the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal is dry. Or is it?
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February 18, 2020
The Endless, Self-Sustaining Sign-Stealing Scandal
Buckle up, because the controversy that has rocked MLB this offseason doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon
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February 13, 2020
The Astros’ Apology Tour Is Off to a Comically Disastrous Start
Houston had four months to prepare a statement of contrition, or at least a good excuse, for the team’s trash-can-banging scheme. Instead of showing remorse, though, Jim Crane, Alex Bregman, and José Altuve showed their Ass-tros.
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February 12, 2020
Tales From the Couch, Plus Shaking Up MLB With Jeff Passan
Russillo also shares his thoughts on the 76ers’ win over the Clippers and the Rockets’ small-ball victory over the Celtics
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January 17, 2020
Major League Cheating, Plus NBA Check-in With Kevin O’Connor
Russillo tries to make sense of the MLB cheating scandal before talking with Kevin about the Bucks’ improvement, the Celtics’ schedule, and more
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January 16, 2020
The Nobody Believes in Us Titans, Round 3 Bets, and the MLB Cheating Scandal, With Peter Schrager, Joe House, Mallory Rubin, and Bill’s Dad
Discussing Alex Cora’s departure from the Red Sox, the upcoming NFL conference championship games, Million Dollar Picks, and much more
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January 16, 2020
MLB Tried to Bring the Astros Scandal to a Close. Instead, It’s Only Getting Bigger.
Carlos Beltrán, Alex Cora, and A.J. Hinch may be taking the fall for Houston’s illicit actions, but the blame game is only starting. And if Thursday was any indication, there will be more to come.
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January 16, 2020
Carlos Beltrán Is Out of a Job, As the Sign-Stealing Scandal Claims Another MLB Manager
The Mets didn’t win a World Series title while using a tech-aided scheme, but in typical Mets fashion, they’re still at the center of baseball’s biggest drama
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January 14, 2020
Alex Cora Is Out in Boston, but That Doesn’t Cure MLB’s Issues
The Red Sox and their manager have parted ways. Baseball must now decide if it wants a cure or treatment for its disease.
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January 13, 2020
The Ripple Effects of the Astros Sign-Stealing Investigation
Jeff Luhnow and A.J. Hinch are out in Houston, but what about Alex Cora and Carlos Beltrán? And what does Monday’s news mean for the Astros in the long term?
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January 13, 2020
GM Jeff Luhnow and Manager AJ Hinch Fired Amid Astros Cheating Scandal
Plus: Will Red Sox manager Alex Cora get the worst suspension?
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January 13, 2020
Nine Key Takeaways From MLB’s Houston Astros Sign-Stealing Punishment
From A.J. Hinch’s attacks on the TV monitor to Rob Manfred’s unheeded warning, parsing MLB’s report on the 2017 world champion’s transgressions reveals what went wrong for Houston—and what’s still to come
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January 13, 2020
The Astros May Have Been Punished for Sign Stealing, but the Cheaters Still Won
After a months-long investigation into reports of sign stealing during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Rob Manfred hammered Houston. But that may not mean much to a franchise that still owns a World Series victory.
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November 22, 2019
There’s Plenty of Evidence the Astros Stole Signs. Is There Proof It Worked?
Houston may be punished for something that didn’t have much of a benefit
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November 13, 2019
Tech, Signs, and Videotape: Breaking Down the Astros’ Latest Sign-Stealing Scandal
On Tuesday, The Athletic reported that in 2017, Houston used an elaborate system to monitor opposing catchers’ signs and relay the intel to the team’s batters. Given the Astros’ history of misbehavior, though, the news wasn’t all that surprising.