MLB Letter in Yankees Sign-Stealing Investigation Finally Unsealed

I wrote about the unsealing order in 2020; the order was then affirmed earlier this year, and just today Judge Jed Rakoff (S.D.N.Y.) unsealed "the minimally redacted version" of the letter. (Judge Rakoff's opinion starts with, "Time to close the books.") You can see that redacted version, which is too inside baseball for me to comment on, at pp. 3-4 of this PDF.

Comments

[Frank Drackman]

There's no stealing signs in baseball!!!!!
Actually there is, even in HS baseball back when I played in the 70's, nobody knew what steroids were (we all smoked the Marriage-a-Juan-a) but I threw a literal "Cut" (on my spike) fastball, and a Brylcreem (a little dab will do ya!) breaking ball that got me thrown out of a few games. But hey, Aluminum bats were just coming into widespread use, pitchers needed every edge they could get,

Frank "Lefty"

[bernard11]

There is a story that Whitey Ford used to wear a World Series ring with a sharpened edge (he had plenty of the rings) when he pitched, and would use it to put a nice nick in the ball.

When the umps caught on he had his catcher sharpen an edge of his shin guards and give the ball a quick swipe before throwing it back.

[StellaLink_the dog]

Hall of Fame pitcher Gaylord Perry had a good career throwing spitballs and then a mediocre career confessing to it. Looks like his book, "Me and the Spitter, an Autobiographical Confession" is long out of print. Just like the author, I've never read the book.

Traditionally, baseball had a rather odd view of what most people would call cheating. Throwing a spitball, for example, was only wrong if you got caught. Likewise, trying to fake out the umpires on trapped balls, hit by pitches and the like was acceptable behavior. If the umpires could be convinced by a fielder's fakery that a trapped ball had been caught on the fly, it was an out and even though it was later determined, by tv replay, for example, that it was a trapped ball, there were no penalties for the deceit nor correction for the bad call. In MLB that changed with the instant replay and challenge rules. Many observers thought that the instant replay would screw up the game, but we were wrong. It's a better game.

So, we can see that in the unlikely event that Mengele is telling the truth about having played baseball, at the time it would have been the perfect game for him.

I suspect that soon Mengele will come out with a series of NFT super hero comic book cards celebrating all the ways that he has saved the world.

[Frank Drackman]

You may be the only person in the Universe who thinks baseball was improved with replay.
But then again, you characterize Gaylord Perry, who just happens to be in the HOF (Google that shit) 314 career wins, 3534 K's (See above parenthetical) as "Good"
Only surprising thing is he didn't get in until his 3rd year of Eligibility, (not surprising, Baseball Media is as stupid as the Marxist Stream Media)
"Having Played Baseball"?? did you even know what the fuck it was?? I mean, you're a "Dog"

Frank "Weak Pitch, No Hit"

[StellaLink_the dog]

Mengele: "You may be the only person in the Universe who thinks baseball was improved with replay."
That's obviously false and a statement typical of your stupidity and uneducable nature.

Mengele: "Gaylord Perry, who just happens to be in the HOF ..."

Note the first four words in the post you are responding to, dummy.

Mengele: '[Y]ou characterize Gaylord Perry, who just happens to be in the HOF[...], as “Good”'

No, Mengele, I did not. I wrote that he had a good career. But, surely even you must agree that every pitcher in the Hall of Fame was a good pitcher. Is your claim to the contrary; that Perry was not a good pitcher?

Mengele: "Google that shit"

So, I googled 'that shit' and instead of anything about Perry I found your picture.

Mengele: “Having Played Baseball”?? did you even know what the fuck it was?? I mean, you’re a “Dog”

I never claimed to have played baseball and I'm not a "Dog", dummy, I'm a dog.

[The Margrave of Azilia]

"A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it" /Matthew 16:4

[Frank Drackman]

"Jesus Wept" John 11:35,
obviously there was crying in the Bible,

Frank "Jesus Alou never wept"

[F.D. Wolf]

In order to send a message to all teams, while simultaneously protecting its golden-boy franchises of the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox, MLB consciously decided to make an object lesson of the Houston Astros and let all public opprobrium fall on them.

[Frank Drackman]

and let them keep their stolen World Series, which is why there's more cheating than ever, just done more cleverly.

[F.D. Wolf]

You have illustrated my point nicely. Get the public outraged about the Houston Astros' 2017 championship. That way, they won't look too hard at the Boston Red Sox 2018 championship, in which they were managed by the bench coach of the 2017 Houston Astros. We need to make an example of someone, but only one, and it can't be one of our marquis franchises.

[bevis the lumberjack]

Kinda makes all the individual and organizational whining the Yankees and their fans have been doing regarding that Astros championship seem petty and phony, doesn’t it?

[StellaLink_the dog]

re: whining Yankees

My impression is that the source of the whining is that the Astros have been largely responsible for that Yankees' less than stellar post-season performance over the last seven years. And, what really upsets them is the fact that the Astros have done it by playing better ball.

[bevis the lumberjack]

The Astros knocked the Yankees out of the playoffs in ‘15 (one game playoff in Yankee Stadium when the Yankees were stealing signs), ‘17, ‘19, and ‘22. ‘22 was a sweep. The aggregate record in those series is 13 - 5 in Houston’s favor.

And the series in 2017 that the Yankees are doing so much caterwauling about saw the home team win every game. In the four games in Houston the Yankees scored 1, 1, 1, and zero runs. Houston would have won the series if they’d been forced to play in earplugs.

[StellaLink_the dog]

Mengele: "there’s more cheating than ever, just done more cleverly."

What's up with all your whimpering? Did you get your foreskin caught in your zipper again?

[Squire Al]

Baseball has its unwritten rules. Some cheating is OK until caught such as doctoring a baseball. Sign stealing is fine so long as you don't use electronic means. Observing a pitcher to see tells about what pitch is coming is not only OK but revered.
And there are other activities that are "policed" by direct action on the field such as when it is OK to throw at a hitter and/or retaliate for throwing at a hitter. How long is too long to watch a home run ofter leads to fights. Some are always in dispute such as stealing a base when the game is all but decided or still trying to score generally by swinging 3-0 when the game is out of hand.
Al of this is why I love the game.

[StellaLink_the dog]

The " culture" of baseball and some of it's idiosyncrasies with respect to fair play, cheating, and sportsmanship have a long history. Despite changes over the years, such as the three-batter rule, instant replays, designated hitter, baseball remains fun and interesting. In my opinion, most of the changes have been for the better. Even the designated hitter features, which many, including me, bitched and moaned about for a long time, didn't ultimately change the game for the worse. It's just a bit different. That free runner on 2d in extra inning play, though, don't think I can get over that. and ten cent beer night. Do these scolds and puritans have to take the fun out of everything?

[David Nieporent]

I don't agree with all of the so-called "unwritten rules," but I certainly appreciate the fact that they are enforced by players, on the field, rather than the NFL's idiotic penalties for unsportsmanlike conduct for things like taunting. ("Oh, he removed his helmet? Well, that's a 15-yard penalty.")

[ragebot]

My favorite unwritten rule is the seldom invoked but always understood is 99 foul balls and you are out.

[Nathan S]

Is it typical to take 8 months for a federal trial court to comply with an appellate decision ordering publication of documents?