Astros manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow, both pictured, were suspended by Major League Baseball on Monday for their part in the team using illegal methods to steal signals during Houston’s 2017 World Series run. Both were immediately fired by Astros owner Jim Crane.
Astronomical punishment: Hinch, Luhnow fired for MLB cheating scandal.
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL DROPPED THE hammer on the Astros on Monday, suspending manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow for the entire 2020 season after a league investigation discovered the Astros used technology to cheat during their 2017 World Series campaign.
Astros owner Jim Crane responded by immediately annoucing the firing of both Hinch and Luhnow during a press conference.
On top of the suspensions of Hinch and Luhnow, MLB will fine the Astros $5 million and will snatch away the team’s first- and second-round picks in both the 2020 and 2021 drafts.
The punishment is expected to be brutal toward Red Sox manager Alex Cora, who was a coach for the Astros during the 2017 season. Former Assistant General Manager Brandon Taubman, who was terminated by the franchise during the World Series for insensitive remarks toward a female reporter, was placed on the ineligible list for his part in the scandal.
“I find that the conduct of the Astros, and its senior baseball operations executives, merits significant discipline,” wrote MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred in the nine-page report. “The conduct described herein has caused fans, players, executives at other MLB clubs, and members of the media to raise questions about the integrity of games at which the Astros participated.
“And while it is impossible to determine whether the conduct actually impacted the results on the field, the perception of some that it did cause significant harm to the game.”
The report tagged Cora as the initiator of the plan along with current Mets manager Carlos Beltran, who was also a major focus of the investigation.
“Crane is extraordinarily troubled and upset by the conduct of member of his organization, fully supported my investigation, and provided unfettered access to any and all information requested,” said Manfred.
Under the stipulations of the suspensions, neither Hinch nor Luhnow cannot be present at any MLB, minor league or spring training facilities. Both can return to their duties one day following the completion of this year’s World Series.
The story developed this past November when former Astros pitcher Mike Fiers alleged publicly in an article in The Atlantic that the Astros engaged in sign-stealing methods during 2017. MLB then launched an investigation that resulted in MLB’s Department of Investigation interviewing 68 witnesses that included 23 current and former Astros player. The search went as far as having several Astros employees providing their cellphones to be imaged and examined.
