The Boston Red Sox dream 2018 season reportedly involved a sign-stealing scheme via their video replay room.
MLB’s sign-stealing controversy is growing. Per Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich of The Athletic, the Boston Red Sox illegally used their video replay room to steal signs in 2018. This was the same year in which the Red Sox won 108 games, led the majors in runs scored, and won the World Series.
According to the report, Red Sox players would go inside the team’s video replay room, just steps from the home dugout at Fenway Park. There, players would pick up the sign sequences and relay them to the batter by standing a certain way on second base.
The Red Sox are, naturally, not the only team that did this. Sources say the New York Yankees and other teams engaged in a similar practice, with New York taking part as recently as 2015.
This story coincides with another big announcement in MLB’s sign-stealing investigation. Per ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Astros’ discipline for sign-stealing could come in the next two weeks. This puts Red Sox manager Alex Cora, who was the Astros’ bench coach in 2017, in even more hot water.
First and foremost, this is not as bad as the Astros’ allegedly banging on a garbage can. It’s really just a leg-up version of how players have stolen signs for decades. A guy gets on base, picks up the signs, and communicates them to teammates up to bat.
But the Astros flouted the system in such a blatant way that MLB has no choice but to leave no stone unturned. Even though what Boston did was arguably harmless in practice, it still possesses the optics of an unfair advantage. This means MLB commissioner Rob Manfred should investigate further.
