Sign stealing

Not to be confused with Street sign theft.

File:Baseball catching giving signs.jpg

Catcher James McCann (in white uniform) of the Detroit Tigers using his right hand (obscured) to give signs to his pitcher, in a 2015 game against the Minnesota Twins.

In baseball, sign stealing is the observing and relaying, through legal and illegal methods, of the signs being given by the opposing catcher to the pitcher or a coach to a base runner. The signs are stolen by the opposing team and then relayed to the other members of the team to give advance knowledge of what kind of pitch is coming next, thereby giving that batter an advantage. Legal sign stealing typically involves the signs being observed by a runner on second base and then relayed to the batter through some sort of gesture. Illegal sign stealing involves mechanical or electronic technology; the rules regarding this have become more stringent over time and continue to evolve.

Sign stealing has been in practice almost since the game's origin in the 19th century, and has continued to be used in recent times. Nothing was done about most early sign stealing incidents besides disabling the teams from doing it.

Legality

According to the unwritten rules of baseball, stealing the signs that are given by the third base coach, or those of the catcher by a baserunner on second base, is acceptable, and it is up to the team giving the signs to protect them so they are not stolen. Even so, pitchers may retaliate when they believe their signs are being stolen with a brushback pitch. On the other hand, a batter peeking in to see the catcher's signs is definitely not tolerated. The signs the catcher sends to the pitcher to call for the next pitch are considered more "sacred" than the signs a third base coach relays to the batter.

Stealing signs is not necessarily a violation of Major League Baseball's (MLB) rulebook; it depends how the signs are stolen. At the December 1961 Winter Meetings, the National League banned the use of a "mechanical device" to steal signs. The use of electronic equipment is not specifically forbidden by MLB rules, but in 2001, Sandy Alderson, while serving as executive vice president for baseball operations of MLB, issued a memorandum stating that teams cannot use electronic equipment to communicate with each other during games, especially for the purpose of stealing signs. Before the 2019 season, in an effort to reduce illegal sign stealing, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred instituted specific prohibitions on where teams could position cameras and how instant replay officials can communicate with managers.

Notable incidents

19th century

The oldest recorded instance of a team attempting to steal signs dates back to 1876, when the Hartford Dark Blues hid a person in a shack to tip off their hitters when the pitcher would throw a curveball. In 1897, George Stallings, the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies, had Morgan Murphy, a backup catcher, hide in a clubhouse beyond center field with a binocular and a telegraph that he used to alert Stallings to what pitch the opposing catcher was calling. In 1900, Murphy was again used to steal signs with Phillies coach Pearce Chiles, stood on a box with electric wires that relayed to him coded messages in the form of electrical buzzes about what pitch was coming, which he communicated to the batters by stomping on the ground. He would get 1 buzz for a fastball, 2 for a curveball, and 3 for a changeup. No action was taken against any involved in these early sign stealing incidents.

20th century

In 2001, members of the 1951 New York Giants admitted to stealing signs against the Brooklyn Dodgers using a telescope to win the National League that season. They came back from 13 1/2 games behind 10 weeks before the postseason to win the pennant using this technique. Bobby Thomson, who hit the "Shot Heard 'Round the World", denied being tipped off to that pitch. On May 26, 1959, despite the Milwaukee Braves bullpen stealing catcher Smokey Burgess's signs, Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Harvey Haddix threw 12 perfect innings before losing the game in the 13th. The only Braves player not to accept the signs was Hank Aaron.

In March 1962, newly acquired Mets pitcher Jay Hook accused his previous team, the 1961 National League champion Reds, of stealing signs throughout the season with help from former Reds pitcher Brooks Lawrence, stationed inside Crosley Field's scoreboard. Lawrence denied the charge, and Reds manager Fred Hutchinson, when asked if he would either confirm or deny the allegation, replied simply, "No. No comment." Forty years later, Hook's story was indirectly corroborated by another member of the '61 Reds, pitcher-author Jim Brosnan, discussing the disappointing home field performance by Reds hitters during the 1961 World Series, despite having Lawrence "up in the left-centerfield scoreboard, stealing every sign the Yankee catchers gave." Despite this confirmation, there were no consequences to those involved.

21st century

Technology has been a component in most recent sign stealing incidents.

2017 Houston Astros scandal

Main article: Houston Astros sign stealing scandal

After the 2019 season, Mike Fiers alleged that the 2017 Houston Astros used technology to illegally steal their opponents' signs and relay them to their hitters. MLB and the Astros opened an investigation into the allegation, and it was expanded to encompass the 2018 and 2019 seasons. On January 13, 2020, Rob Manfred announced that MLB's investigation confirmed that the Astros illegally used a video camera system to steal signs during their 2017 and 2018 seasons. The organization was penalized with a $5 million fine, forfeiture of first- and second-round draft picks in 2020 and 2021, and the suspension of general manager Jeff Luhnow and field manager A. J. Hinch for one year; Luhnow and Hinch were subsequently fired by the team the same day. Three days after the Astros penalties were announced, the New York Mets and Carlos Beltrán (an Astros player at the time of the scandal) mutually parted ways. Beltrán had been hired as the team's new manager on November 1, 2019, so at the time of the announcement he had never managed a game for the team. Beltrán was the only player specifically named in MLB's report on the Astros scandal. While he was not directly linked to any prohibited activity, he was one of several Astros players who met during that season to discuss improvements in their sign stealing.

2018 Red Sox

Main article: 2018 Boston Red Sox season

On January 7, 2020, the Boston Red Sox were implicated in another sign stealing scandal after three unnamed team members told The Athletic that the Red Sox had used their replay room to steal signs of opposing teams during the 2018 season. On January 13, 2020, Manfred stated that he would determine the appropriate punishment for Red Sox manager Alex Cora, who was also implicated in the Astros scandal, when the investigation was completed. The next day, Cora and the Red Sox mutually agreed to part ways; Dave Dombrowski, the general manager who hired Cora, was dismissed from the Red Sox before the 2018 sign stealing scandal was made public.

On January 29, 2020, Masslive reported that the results of the MLB investigation against the Red Sox would be released before the start of training camp and as early as the following week. However, a person with knowledge of the probe, speaking on anonymity, told the Associated Press that the Red Sox investigation will take longer than expected and will not be concluded at the start of training camp as previously hoped. On February 4, 2020, MLB Network journalist Peter Gammons reported that former Red Sox player Chris Young told him that he was the mastermind of the Red Sox Apple Watch scheme, telling him "I started the whole Apple Watch thing. I got it from when I was with the Yankees." Young later denied this, and Gammons issued a retraction on Twitter. SNY revealed that Young had been interviewed by MLB officials as part of the 2017 investigation against the Red Sox and that multiple sources told the sports news agency that Young was in fact a leader of the team's 2017 Apple Watch scheme.

The same year, a phone conversation between Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild and replay room officials revealed that the Yankees engaged in sign stealing with an Apple Watch as well, which resulted in the Yankees being fined.

Reactions to sign stealing

Nothing Personal host David Samson and Fox Sports Radio's Jonas Knox have said they believe this type of cheating is widespread throughout the sport.

Notable sign stealers

Many players and coaches throughout baseball history have been considered the best at sign stealing. Some of these players known for sign stealing are Del Baker, Joey Amalfitano, and Joe Nossek.

Pitcher Al Worthington had a religious objection to sign stealing, and quit both the 1959 Giants and the 1960 White Sox because of the teams' sign stealing.

Manager Whitey Herzog was known to complain about other teams stealing signs. After a game where the Brewers were found to be sign stealing using their mascot Bernie Brewer, he reportedly said, "Maybe we should put a Texas Ranger or somebody out there and shoot a gun or something when a curveball is coming," referring to the incident.