Over the past few days, the New York Yankees have expressed their frustration over the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, and on Friday, GM Brian Cashman voiced his opinion. Earlier this week, the Astros and their players addressed the scandal but downplayed the significance of the consequences. Cashman believes that their actions had a direct impact on the Yankees and the MLB as a whole.
 “I definitely think it had an effect on things, without question,” Cashman said Friday. “The Houston Astros were dealing with a distinct advantage moreso than their opponents. That’s a fact. I don’t think anybody can disagree with that, although they may try.”
The Yankees faced off against the Astros in the 2018 and 2019 ALCS. It is assumed that they utilized their tactics in both series’, as well as many others. While hitters weren’t directly impacted, the cost it had on pitchers was significant.
Who knows how many pitchers were sent back down to the minor leagues due to a poor performance against the Astros at any given time? While punishments have been dealt, players across the league have begun expressing their opinions.
New York Yankees’ Cashman sees this as an opportunity to vent:
“There’s a bit of a therapeutic side to this thing,” Cashman said. “I think everybody has the right to speak to this subject matter, speak their truth, and then find the time — sooner than later — to move forward. Because that’s all you can do at this point. This was a very noteworthy story, and we’re all gathering in our various camps now and being asked a lot of questions on a daily basis.
“It’s an unhealthy dynamic for our game to be dealing with, and I’m looking forward to getting back to normal despite the frustrations about what occurred back in ’17 — at the very least. Ultimately, that was then, this is now. And we have an exciting opportunity with the personnel we have here to focus on what’s ahead of us, rather than what’s in the past.”
The events that took place this offseason will remain a part of history forever, and hopefully, the teams and players have learned from the Astros’ mistakes.