I was throwing some really good changeups and they were getting fouled off. 'There was a banging from the dugout, almost like a bat hitting the bat rack every time a changeup signal got put down,' Farquhar said. It's ruining jobs for younger guys.'įormer White Sox pitcher Danny Farquhar appeared to notice what the Astros were doing in September 2017 when he heard loud banging during two relief appearances at Minute Maid Park. 'Young guys getting hit around in the first couple of innings starting a game, and then they get sent down.

'I just want the game to be cleaned up a little bit because there are guys who are losing their jobs because they're going in there not knowing,' Fiers explained. While two of The Athletic's sources said the Astros' sign-stealing system was used during the 2017 playoffs, another person insisted that the practice stopped at the end of the regular season. If viewers believed they had figured the signs out, they would communicate to the batter with a loud noise, sources explained - usually by banging on a trash can in a tunnel near the dugout. Team employees and players would watch the screen to try and decode the opposing team's signs, sources said. The camera's feed was reportedly shown on a television monitor on a wall steps from the team's home dugout. The sign-stealing setup apparently involved a camera in center field that looked in on an opposing catcher's signs. 'It would not be appropriate to comment further on this matter at this time.' 'Regarding the story posted by The Athletic earlier today, the Houston Astros organization has begun an investigation in cooperation with Major League Baseball,' the Astros said, according to Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. The Astros responded to the story with a brief statement Tuesday afternoon. The league is also expected to interview current and former Astros players and employees, according to The Athletic's sources. That investigation could reportedly be expanded to determine which members of the Astros organization were aware of the illegal sign-stealing and whether the team kept doing it. MLB is already investigating the Astros' culture following the firing of assistant general manager Brandon Taubman for insensitive remarks toward a group of reporters following the ALCS.

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