Good job internet detectives but really, it just doesn't matter. Nothing is going to come from it. Astros aren't getting their manager, general manager and draft picks back. Media will still vilify the Astros; it's forever going to be the "Astros sign stealing scandal", not Red Sox sign stealing, not Yankees sign stealing... Repeat offenders Alex Cora and Boston got a slap on the wrist and blamed the rogue video intern. If there's anything here(don't really know that there is), Yankees can do the same (blame the video intern, like their reporter did) https://nypost.com/2018/10/17/paranoid-astros-falsely-accused-yankees-of-using-camera-to-cheat/ HOUSTON — An Astros official confronted a Yankees employee operating a high-tech camera during their late-May series at Yankee Stadium, leveling a charge of cheating and threatening that the culprit would be barred from working in the major leagues for life. The matter was quickly defused when the Yankees proved that the Commissioner’s Office already had given its blessing for use of the camera. Before the 2018 season, the Commissioner’s Office required all 30 teams to supply a list of every camera at its disposal that was taking video at or near its playing field. Teams have come to use high-tech cameras as teaching and player-development tools, but the growing concern was they were also being used for more nefarious acts such as sign stealing. So MLB asked to know the intent of each camera and whether it was live (could be used in real time to cheat) or recording. During the season, the Yankees wanted to buy a camera that took thousands of frames per second. They wanted to use it to minutely capture hand grips as a teaching tool to show their pitchers ideal hand positioning to upgrade spin rate, movement, velocity, etc. They asked MLB for its blessing before purchasing the camera and MLB gave approval, but cautioned that such cameras might be banned next year as part of a large review by the commissioner. So rather than mount the camera — as most other teams that have one do — the Yankees would have an employee shoot from the center-field black camera well area. It was a wide-open, non-obscured area — hence, not covert. During an Astros-Yankees series May 28-30, Houston senior director of baseball operations Brandon Taubman went to that hitting-eye area, which would be off-limits to an employee of an opponent. Commissioner Rob Manfred issued a memo last year that anyone caught stealing signs would never work in baseball again, and this was relayed as a threat to the Yankee employee. The Yankees recognized that someone operating a camera manually would have raised their suspicions, so they recognized the Astros concern. So, Yankees assistant GM Jean Afterman called MLB’s senior VP of operations, Peter Woodfork, to alert him of the incident and to remind that permission had been granted for the camera. Yankees GM Brian Cashman called his Astros counterpart, Luhnow, to also explain that this was a non-live feed camera designed for scouting purposes. The Astros, with the information, decided not to make any charges with MLB, and the matter was dropped. The Yankees and MLB did not want to comment on this matter, and Taubman did not respond to an interview request about the incident.
Apparently they weren't using the approved camera. This was a camera that could send the feed live. Internet warriors say the cable(s) coming out adds to the thought this was being sent somewhere else live. What better cover than to have an approved person in the outfield with a camera, only he's using an unapproved camera that can send the feed to steal signs.
Were they also trying to see how the opposing catcher adjusts his cup or something for coaching purposes?
I have to say, I appreciate the Jomboy response embedded in this thread: "If I were an Astros fan, I'd be tagging me every day, too." The first hint of humility from anyone in that camp.
Does anyone remember the phantom "foul tip" against Gary Sanchez top 11, 2019 ALCS game 2? → ASTROS CHEATING, CODEBREAKER, BLAGRABARAGARHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (see it at 22:20)
This asshat on 610 right now keeps ranting on how Altuve goes right into the dugout after his walk off. I wanted to call in and rail on him but couldn’t figure out who the **** he was.
The Altuve walkoff buzzer thing which was, and still is, being presented as undeniable proof is by far the most annoying aspect of this whole debacle. It was created out of thin air by a random twitter user and the media ran with it.
I agree, it's circuitous and the process may be lost in translation. Here's another possibility: 1. The camera has a local IP address. 2. The IP address is given to someone in the dugout and the IP address is used to connect a device in the dugout to the camera via a browser. 3. The camera is pointed at the opposing catcher and streams real-time to the device in the dugout 4. Signs are then relayed in real-time from the dugout to a coach on the field, player on the bases or some other manner (whistling, whatever) to the batter. That makes more sense given what's posted in this thread regarding the capabilities of a FasTec camera.
His breakdown of the whole Kelly v Correa was pretty fair. He might have cooled down a bit from the whole thing. But he was a huge part of the hysteria, pushing any and every conspiracy theory, buzzers, whistles, whatever, and completely milked the wholed thing making shirts off of it and everything. Everyone will downplay it because this whole thing is just two entitled whiny fanbases crying that their teams were beat and it hurts doubly because the media, national sports media, ran to their side in order to give their two favorite franchises excuses for not beating the Astros. Had the Astros beat Cleveland and the Diamondbacks that year no one would have given a single F. I 100% believe that and it is evidenced by the reports of other teams cheating and nothing coming of it. So what I suggest to everyone is to just realize this isn't about the Astros. Had Cleveland won that year and beat the Yankees and Dodgers to do it they'd be in our spot. This is just about the Yankees and Dodgers. Astros, as some ESPN sportscaster put it, robbed them of a NY-LA World Series. Let's ignore that both teams have been contenders for years now and continue to screw up and choke against other teams, we are just going to have to wear the hat on this one fellas.