For weeks, the New York Yankees were attempting to appeal a judge’s decision that would unseal a letter from Major League Baseball that many believed would implicate them in a sign-stealing scandal of Houston Astros proportions.
The letter was finally leaked on Tuesday and the contents were…not what many thought it would be.
The Yankees did use the video replay room to decode signs from the opposing catcher and relayed the information to the dugout via the dugout phone. When a runner would reach second base, he would be able to look at the signs and relay it to the hitter
This happened in 2015 and the first half of 2016.
The Yankees did not relay signs in real-time to hitters the way the Astros did with the trash cans. They also did not use the YES Network center field camera as the Red Sox alleged.
The team was fined $100,000 for improper use of the dugout phone which MLB donated toward Hurricane Irma relief.
Many of this, with the exception of the fine, had already been reported and the sign decoding methods are believed to be widely used across baseball (the Red Sox and Astros have both been known to use it).
WFAN’s Evan Roberts called the report a “nothing burger” and many on social media — from reporters to fans — seemed to agree on the anticlimactic reveal of the letter.
On the other hand, some — particularly in Houston — believe this is enough evidence to prove the Yankees had cheated.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram