The Houston Astros have little to do with a Week 17 Thursday Night Football game between the Cleveland Browns and New York Jets. The MLB's most successful team of the last decade found its way into the broadcast though as legendary broadcaster Al Michaels took it upon himself to give the audience some humor at the expense of the Astros.
Throughout Thursday's game, there were distinct banging sounds heard on the broadcast. It was perhaps most prominent, at least in Michaels' ears, during a long third down for the Jets in the third quarter.
Right before the snap, Michaels took his chance to take a shot at the Astros.
“Somebody is pounding on that trash can, I think the Astros must be in town,” Michaels said.
It was subtle but it was noticed and many fans got a kick out of Michaels' antics.
Astros scandal still ‘haunts' them
The Astros have caught plenty of hate since their sign-stealing scandal played out. As a refresher, the Astros were found to have illegally used technology to obtain signs from opponents during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
Houston won the World Series in 2017 and in 2019 reached the Fall Classic again, losing to the Washington Nationals. The initial report on the sign-stealing was published two weeks after the 2019 series concluded, though the MLB found no evidence that the Astros stole signs that season.
Let's make one thing clear, the Astros were and are not the only MLB team that steals signs. They were the team to take it to extreme levels though and were given up by a former player who was part of that 2017 team, among others.
Haunts is in quotations because though those involved in the scandal apologized and showed a remorseful side, the punishments doled out were mainly seen as a slap on the wrist.
Several coaches and front office executives were fired following the league's investigation, but no active players were suspended and Houston's 2017 World Series title remains.
Winning another title in 2022 likely gave the Astros and their fanbase some validation, but opposing fans, and Al Michaels, won't let Houston forget about its cheating.
Follow Us
Subscribe