A punishment has officially been handed down to the Houston Astros.
Houston Astros GM Jeff Luhnow and manager AJ Hinch have been suspended for one year after an MLB investigation found the team used technology to cheat during its World Series-winning 2017 season. Not only that, They will forfeit first- and second-round draft picks in both 2020 and ’21, a fine of $5 million (the maximum allowed under MLB’s constitution) and former Astros assistant GM Brandon Taubman on baseball’s ineligible list.
Major League Baseball released a statement on the matter:
“I find that the conduct of the Astros, and its senior baseball operations executives, merits significant discipline,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said as part of the nine-page ruling. “I base this finding on the fact that the club’s senior baseball operations executives were given express notice in September 2017 that I would hold them accountable for violations of our policies covering sign stealing, and those individuals took no action to ensure that the club’s players and staff complied with those policies during the 2017 postseason and the 2018 regular season.
“The conduct described herein has caused fans, players, executives at other MLB clubs, and members of the media to raise questions about the integrity of games in which the Astros participated. And while it is impossible to determine whether the conduct actually impacted the results on the field, the perception of some that it did causes significant harm to the game.”
Major League Baseball will now turn their attention to conducting an investigation on the Boston Red Sox for the accusations made against the team just last week.