Tag: Houston Astros

Former Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel is only a little sorry about the cheating scandal

Former Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel, who won a World Series with the team, offered a lame apology for the Astros’ sign stealing scheme.

White Sox pitcher Dallas Keuchel, who won a World Series and earned an All-Star selection with the Houston Astros in 2017, offered a half-hearted apology for the team’s massive cheating scandal – but also hinted that the Astros were only doing what was customary across the league at the time. Keuchel addressed the media at a White Sox event on Friday and downplayed the Astros’ sign stealing, saying it was “it was never intended to be what it’s made to be” now – that the team has been caught and both the GM and manager have been fired.

According to Keuchel, the actions the Astros took were simply in line with “the state of baseball.”

“When there’s nobody on base, when in the history of Major League Baseball has there been multiple signs? You can go back and watch film of every team in the playoffs, there were probably six of eight teams using multiple signs. It’s just what the state of baseball was at that point in time. Was it against the rules? Yes it was. And I personally am sorry for what’s come about the whole situation. It is what it is and we’ve got to move past that. I never thought anything would have come like it did. I, myself, am sorry, but it’s we’ve just got to move on.”

Keuchel also claimed that the Astros weren’t always effective at the plate even when stealing signs, and there were some pitchers over the course of the year that the team couldn’t hit anyway. He confusingly described the system as something that “really works,” but only “a little bit.”

“So at that point that’s when the whole system, it really works, a little bit, but at the same time, there was a human element where some guys were better than our hitters.”

Keuchel also made it clear that he doesn’t approve of former Astros pitcher Mike Fiers acting as a whistleblower, citing the sanctity of the clubhouse.

Many baseball fans aren’t buying Keuchel’s attempt at an apology.

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Whit Merrifield: ‘Jose Altuve took my spot’ in 2018 All-Star Game

Kansas City Royal Whit Merrifield is now calling himself a two-time all-star, in light of the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.

Kansas City Royal Whit Merrifield is now calling himself a two-time all-star, in light of the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.

WATCH: Mets hire Luis Rojas as manager, replacing Carlos Beltrán

The New York Mets have their new manager less than a week after parting ways with Carlos Beltran following his inclusion in the Astros sign-stealing investigation.

The New York Mets have their new manager less than a week after parting ways with Carlos Beltran following his inclusion in the Astros sign-stealing investigation. The Mets announced Wednesday that they have hired Luis Rojas as field manager, promoting from within to fill the role.

Rojas spent last season as the team’s quality control coach and outfield instructor (in his first season on a major league staff).

The 38-year-old has spent 13 seasons in the Mets organization and interviewed for the managerial position before the organization hired Beltran to the role in November 2019.

“Luis earned this job. He has literally trained his whole life to be a manager,” Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen said. “He comes from a legacy family. … he is respected by the players. He is trusted by the players. And he’s someone that we have great confidence in. (…) we think that he has the ability to be consistent, to be calm under pressure and to understand the opportunity that this team has as we head into 2020.”

Rojas is the son of former Giants and Expos manager Felipe Alou.

WATCH: Astros players will apologize for role in sign-stealing scandal at spring training

The Houston Astros players are set to apologize for their roles in the team’s sign-stealing scandal at spring training, that revelation via owner Jim Crane.

The Houston Astros players are set to apologize for their roles in the team’s sign-stealing scandal at spring training, that revelation via owner Jim Crane.

MLB.com reports that Crane explained Tuesday that the team will address the situation once the players are geographically together. The report follows the Astros FanFest weekend, which was this past weekend.

“We’ll all get them together and they’ll come out with a strong statement as a team and, I think, apologize for what happened and move forward,” Crane told MLB.com. “A couple of guys that have been interviewed have been holding back a little bit. We need to get them a little more time to get together.”

During FanFest, Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman were the most prominent players speaking to media, but neither player addressed the scandal in a particularly apologetic manner.

Bregman called the accusations that the pair wore buzzers at the plate “just stupid,” according to Astros beat writer Brian McTaggart, and Altuve assured fans that the team would return to the World Series.

Astros pitchers and catchers report to spring training on Thursday, Feb. 13, the first full-squad workout is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 17.

“Quite frankly, we’ll apologize for what happened, ask forgiveness and move forward,” Crane said.

Mets hire Luis Rojas as manager, replacing Carlos Beltrán

The New York Mets have their new manager less than a week after parting ways with Carlos Beltran following his inclusion in the Astros sign-stealing investigation.

The New York Mets have their new manager less than a week after parting ways with Carlos Beltran following his inclusion in the Astros sign-stealing investigation.

Astros players will apologize for role in sign-stealing scandal at spring training, according to tea

The Houston Astros players are set to apologize for their roles in the team’s sign-stealing scandal at spring training, that revelation via owner Jim Crane.

The Houston Astros players are set to apologize for their roles in the team’s sign-stealing scandal at spring training, that revelation via owner Jim Crane.

The Astros tweeted out some awards they won and yeah, it went as expected

The Houston Astros didn’t need to celebrate this.

The Houston Astros, to put it nicely, just need to shut up for a while and do their best to back away from any more chances of bringing unwanted attention their way.

Because this whole sign-stealing scandal has been an absolute mess for the franchise, and rightfully so. And how they’ve been handling it has been, well, awful.

Sure, they fired their GM and manager moments after MLB punishments were handed out. But then last weekend they had Jose Altuve and others out there for a FanFest event and it went as one would it expect it too.

Then on Tuesday night the team tweeted out a few local awards some members of the franchise won, which doesn’t sound like a good thing to do:

Here’s an idea: The Houston Astros didn’t need to announce those awards to the world. How about you just let the awards happen and then move on, without sharing the “news” with anyone outside of the team.

Because that Tweet, which had to be sent by some poor member of their social media team, did not go over well:

Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman speak out on Astros’ cheating scandal

Here’s what Astros stars are saying about the team’s cheating scandal.

The Houston Astros are searching for a new manager and general manager after the club fired A.J. Hinch and Jeff Luhnow in the wake of an MLB report that detailed how the team used technology to steal signs during the 2017 and 2018 MLB seasons. In the aftermath of the report, fans have continued to dig into different theories about the Astros’ scheme, including the claims that players wore buzzers as a part of their uniform as a signaling device to be tipped off to pitches. Many MLB players are outraged, and it’s safe to assume that the Astros will face incredible opposition from fans on the road in the coming seasons.

According to 2017 AL MVP Jose Altuve, though, the distractions and organizational upheaval won’t keep the reigning American League champions out of the 2020 World Series. Altuve spoke to the media and addressed the scandal on Saturday, saying that “everything will be fine” by the end of the upcoming season.

“Believe me, at the end of the year, everything will be fine. We’re going to be in the World Series again. People don’t believe it…. we will. We made it last year, we were one game away of winning it all.”

When asked about the claims that he wore a buzzer under his uniform, Altuve said he wasn’t upset about the speculation, and noted that MLB didn’t find evidence in their investigation.

Alex Bregman, meanwhile, mostly sidestepped questions from reporters, repeating the same stock answer whenever asked about the scandal.

 

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James Harden on Astros’ scandal: ‘I’ve got my own problems’

With James Harden in a slump and the Rockets having lost three of four games, Harden wasn’t in the mood to address the Astros’ controversy.

In the recent past, Rockets star James Harden has shown his support for the hometown Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). Now in his eighth season in Houston and adored by many local fans, Harden often uses his platform to promote other professional sports teams in the city.

But in January 2020, Harden and the Rockets (26-14) know they have bigger concerns of their own that need to be resolved.

MLB disciplined the Astros on Monday after its investigators confirmed the existence of an illegal sign-stealing system in 2017 and parts of 2018. The team then fired manager AJ Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow.

That’s kept the Astros in the headlines for several days, especially in Houston. But with the Rockets having lost three of four games, the former NBA MVP wasn’t in the mood to weigh in on the Astros’ situation when asked about it at Friday’s team practice. His comments:

Honestly, I don’t even know too much detail about that. I’ve got my own individual problems to worry about. We’re not playing so well right now. So, I can’t give you any info.

Harden is correct in his assessment that the team’s problems also include a dramatic decline in his own individual play.

For the season, Harden entered Saturday averaging 37.2 points per game — the highest of any NBA player in 56 years and the most by a guard ever.

But in two of the three recent losses, Harden has posted then-season-low point totals with 17 and 13. His defense has also noticeably slipped.

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Overall, in the four-game downturn, Harden is averaging 25.8 points per game on 34.9% shooting and 31.1% on 3-pointers — well below his overall 2019-20 season percentages of 44.6% and 37.3%, respectively.

Coming off two straight off days, Harden and the rested Rockets will have a chance to turn things around when they return to the court Saturday at home against the Los Angeles Lakers (33-8). Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. Central at Toyota Center, with the game broadcast nationally on ABC.

With Houston reeling from a bad sports week amid the punishment of the Astros and a season-ending loss by the Texans in the NFL’s football playoffs, it could be an ideal opportunity on the national stage for Harden’s Rockets to lift the city’s spirits.

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