Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch was very blunt in his response to allegations that the Astros used whistling as a form of sign-stealing during Game 1 of the ALCS against the New York Yankees:
Astros manager AJ Hinch on the allegation that his team was whistling in the dugout to relay signs in Game 1: “It made me laugh. Because it’s ridiculous. Had I known it would take something like that to set off the Yankees, we would’ve practiced that in spring training.”
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 17, 2019
Yankees coaches were purportedly furious at the conclusion of Game 1 due to an apparent whistling noise coming from the Astros dugout (via George A. King of the New York Post):
The Yankees were so paranoid they had Gary Sanchez flash Masahiro Tanaka multiple signs in Game 1 with nobody on base after the Astros were suspected of stealing signs in a Game 5 win over the Rays at home in the ALDS.
Even though the except states that the Rays were suspected of stealing signs in Game 5 of the ALDS, most analysts agreed that Rays starter Tyler Glasnow was tipping his pitches. Astros third baseman Alex Bregman was caught on camera telling Carlos Correa that when Glasnow's glove was up by his chin he was going to throw a fastball. Alternatively, when the glove was at chest level, Glasnow was throwing a curveball.
The MLB cleared the Astros of any wrongdoing on Thursday morning after a brief investigation. Still, this is not the first time that the team has been accused of using questionable gamesmanship.
Indeed, the Astros were accused of stealing signs during last year's ALCS against the Boston Red Sox. If nothing else, this trend is cause for skepticism.
However, Hinch clearly does not take stock in the controversy. The 2017 AL Manager of the Year is attempting to lead the Astros to their second World Series appearance in three years.
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