The Houston Astros held their offseason fanfest Saturday at a somewhat awkward time, but it meant we got our first comments from a key player about the fallout from the team’s 2017 sign stealing scandal.
Third baseman Alex Bregman declined to say much when he met the press. He denied that he and Jose Altuve had worn any electronic devices to aid them in stealing signs and refused to comment on the league investigation or the aftermath of it.
After Alex Bregman said there were no buzzers or wearable electronic devices during the 2019 season, he called the social media uproar about it "just stupid."
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) January 18, 2020
Astros 3b Alex Bregman, from FanFest, fielded several questions about sign-stealing scheme. "The Commissioner came out with the report, MLB did their report, and the Astros did what they did. They made their decision what they're going to do and I have no other thoughts on it."
— Alyson Footer (@alysonfooter) January 18, 2020
Bregman did, however, make something of a promise regarding the 2020 season.
Alex Bregman: “The 2020 year, our actions will speak louder than our words.”
— Brian T. Smith (@ChronBrianSmith) January 18, 2020
The awkward reality is that the Astros still have a lot of talent and have every chance of being a playoff team again in 2020, even without stealing signs. They would probably love to respond by doing what the Patriots did after Deflategate and using it as motivation to beat everyone. That’ll be harder to do in MLB than the NFL, but this is a group of players whose talents and accomplishments are being questioned as illegitimate. Even if that’s a reasonable response, they won’t like it, and Bregman’s quote seems to illustrate that.
The Houston Astros are confirmed cheaters and deserve an asterisk. Send that message by wearing our Houston Asterisks T-shirt! You can buy it here:
