NEW YORK, NY Feb. 11 (DPI) – Pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training tomorrow, but there’s little indication Major League Baseball has put the sign-stealing scandal behind it.

This week it was revealed that the Houston Astros’ front office likely played a hand in the sign-stealing scandal as well. As Jason Gay of The Wall Street Journal wrote this week, “The league alleged that the Astros sign-stealing scam was not some two-bit trash can circus act, but a wide-ranging team operation that involved front-office personnel, began back in 2016, included both home and road games, and employed sophisticated technology like, uh, Excel.”

Gay’s column – which complemented original reporting by Jared Diamond – kept the drum beating for more punishment by MLB, which conducted a 10 week investigation, all leading to the firings of both the general manager and the manager of the Astros.

Today, too, it was reported that a journeyman pitcher who got roughed up in a single inning by Astros hitters in 2017 is now suing the Astros organization for the impact that the sign-stealing had on his career. The pitcher, Mike Bolsinger, never played in the major leagues after that.

Three popular themes appeared on the comment thread: That the Astros players have gotten off with little more than a wrist slap, that the franchise should be stripped of its 2017 title, and that Pete Rose – banished from the sport in 1989 for betting on games as a manager – should be reinstated and inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The most popular comments:

I’m a Dodger fan.  I don’t want L.A. to have the title.  I want the title vacated like the Tour de France did with Lance Armstrong.   No winner.  End of story. In 2017 there was no “winner” in MLB.

1. Luhnow and Hinch should receive lifetime bans from baseball.
2. 2017 World Series Champions Astros should have their title stripped.
3. 2017 Astro team members should be fined at least 50 per cent of their World Series and Playoff shares.
How about that for starters?

You can’t just up and give the trophy to the Dodgers – the Astros likewise defeated the Yankees in the playoffs with totally inflated stats at home – winning the 4 home games, losing the 3 at the Stadium. Makes it rather obvious that the cheating was the edge.
Just vacate the championship.

Vacate the title.  This wasn’t just a World Series cheat but a season-long cheat that also impacted the earlier playoff rounds.  There’s no guarantee that the Dodgers would have beaten whoever else they might have played in lieu of the Cheatstros.  If the NCAA can do it to Louisville in basketball, MLB can certainly do it here.

Rose banned for life vs. a slap on the hand for these cheaters.

The MLB used to jealously guard their reputation, such as the bans of Rose and the Black Sox. This all changed during the steroids era. It may have something to do with the ’94 strike and giving the MLBPA way too much power. Now the MLB bends over backwards to make sure players aren’t facing too much scrutiny.
The MLB in 1920 would have stripped the Astros of their World Series title and banned the ringleaders from the game for life.
Now they just get a mild slap on the wrist.