Several Dodgers go public, peeved by Astros' cheating scam
HOUSTON, TX - APRIL 04: Manager A.J. Hinch #14 of the Houston Astros and general manager Jeff Luhnow talk during batting practice at Minute Maid Park on April 4, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Dodgers would rather earn a World Series trophy on their own than accept any scraps from the Houston Astros or Boston Red Sox, the teams that beat them in 2017 and '18.
Despite being eager to focus on the upcoming season, several Dodgers publicly for the first time expressed annoyance at the Astros for the sign-stealing system used during the 2017 season, when Houston beat them in seven games in the World Series.
“They cheated and they got away with it,” utilityman Kiké Hernández said Saturday during the team's annual FanFest outside Dodger Stadium. “I don't think it hurts more now than it did three years ago when we lost the Series.”
Hernández said the Dodgers “had our doubts” about the Astros in 2017.
“Everybody warned us. A lot of people told us to worry about them,” Hernández said. “We just thought it was just rumors, but I guess not.”
Two weeks ago, Major League Baseball released the findings of its investigation, which concluded the Astros used a center-field monitor for real-time video of catchers' signs and subsequently banged a trash can to alert their hitters of incoming pitches, confirming initial comments by Mike Fiers to The Athletic.
MLB suspended Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager AJ Hinch for the entire season and both were subsequently fired by owner Jim Crane. The team was also fined $5 million.
The Red Sox are under investigation for possibly stealing signs in Alex Cora's first season as manager in 2018, when Boston beat the Dodgers. Cora has since been fired.
Furious Dodgers fans have snapped up tickets for the Angels' home opener against Houston - a rare chance to boo the Astros, who aren't scheduled to play the Dodgers this season. LA manager Dave Roberts understands their irritation.
“Frustrating is probably the floor of my emotions,” Roberts said.
In hindsight, Roberts said pitchers Clayton Kershaw, Kenley Jansen and Yu Darvish received “unfair criticism” for their performances against the Astros in the World Series.
"It's really frustrating if you look at what could've happened," Roberts said.
Roberts has a long friendship with Hinch, whom he said he hasn't spoken to since the scandal broke.
“I don't think it really affects our relationship personally,” Roberts said.
The Los Angeles City Council voted symbolically this week to ask MLB to strip the Astros and Red Sox of their World Series titles and award the trophies to the Dodgers.
Thanks but no thanks, third baseman Justin Turner said.
“We don't want a trophy, we don't want a fake banner hanging in our stadium," he said. “We didn't earn it.”
At the same time, Turner called into question the Astros' right to call themselves champions.
“It's hard to feel like they earned it," he said. “Just not 100% sure if they should be called champions for the rest of their lives.”
Speaking on Saturday at a White Sox fan convention in Chicago, former Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal compared the Astros to another world champion that's been penalized for cheating.
“They’re like the Patriots of baseball, right?” Grandal answered when asked about Houston during a kids-only Q&A. “They found a loophole, it worked out, but I think it’s a question that’s going to keep on coming up.”
Andrew Friedman, president of baseball operations, was asked whether the Astros have contacted him to apologize or publicly been contrite enough.
“They have not," he said in answer to both questions.
After initially poring over MLB's report, Friedman said he's tried to let it go.
“It's just wasted energy and effort at this point because that's taking away from something that we can do to help make ourselves better in 2020,” he said.
Turner said the players want to experience everything that goes along with winning a World Series, including dog-piling on the field after the final out, popping Champagne in the clubhouse, and parading through the city's streets.
“We want to do it the right way,” he said.