Cody Bellinger was one of the first people to speak out against the Houston Astros after Major League Baseball confirmed that the 2017 World Series champions cheated their way to a title, and Bellinger feels no differently about the situation a month later. If anything, the Los Angeles Dodgers star has gotten more angry.
Bellinger was asked on Friday about the scripted apology the Astros delivered the day before, and he said he found Houston owner Jim Crane’s comments to be “weak.” Bellinger also called it “wild” that Crane said the Astros’ sign-stealing scheme did not impact games.
"They're not saying that they're cheating. They never said 'No' to the buzzers. They always just said the commissioner's report. It's kind of bizarre what's been going on over there. We listened to that and the guy said it wasn't impacting the game — are you kidding me?"
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) February 14, 2020
Bellinger also took aim at Jose Altuve, whom he accused of stealing an MVP Award away from New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge in 2017. Bellinger then said the Astros stole a World Series title away from the Dodgers that year and that MLB commissioner Rob Manfred’s punishment was not adequate.
Bellinger: "I thought Manfred's punishment was weak, giving them immunity. I mean these guys were cheating for three years. I think what people don't realize is Altuve stole an MVP from Judge in '17. Everyone knows they stole the ring from us."
— Jorge Castillo (@jorgecastillo) February 14, 2020
While there has been no evidence that the Astros wore buzzers so signs could be relayed to them, Bellinger clearly finds the denials from Houston players hard to believe. He said the video that showed Altuve telling Astros players not to tear off his jersey after the second baseman hit a game-winning home run off Yankees reliever Aroldis Chapman “makes zero sense to me.”
Bellinger on the video that circulated apparently showing Jose Altuve telling his teammates not to rip off his jersey after his walk-off home run in Game 7 of the ALCS. pic.twitter.com/WhRByRmZBb
— Jorge Castillo (@jorgecastillo) February 14, 2020
Obviously, Bellinger and the Dodgers feel a lot more strongly about the Astros’ cheating than many others. They lost to Houston in seven games, which makes the sign-stealing even tougher to swallow. Mix in the stuff about Yu Darvish supposedly tipping pitches and there are still plenty of unanswered questions about the 2017 World Series. You can’t blame Bellinger for being so fired up.
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:
