HOUSTON — According to an article by The Athletic, former pitcher Mike Fiers, along with three other members of that season's team, claimed the Astros used a sophisticated system to steal signs in 2017 -- the season the team won its first World Series.
The article is written by Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich. Drellich covered the Astros for the Houston Chronicle in 2014, 2015 and 2016.
Fiers pitched for the Astros from 2015 to 2017. He was on the championship team, although he wasn't on the postseason roster that year.
According to the article, Fiers claims the Astros placed a camera in the centerfield batter's eye that was focused on the signs being given by the catcher to the pitcher.
According to the report, a TV was placed on a wall steps from the Astros' dugout that was connected to the feed coming from the camera in the outfield.
Astros employees and players would watch the screen during the game in an attempt to decode the signs, the report claims. Once they thought they figured out the signs, according to the report, the players and employees would make a loud noise to inform the batter what pitch was coming. Specifically, the report claims, the loud noises were made to alert the batter of a breaking ball or off-speed pitch.
The report quoted a White Sox pitcher who claimed he heard the banging while he was pitching.
The Astros released a statement after the article was published.
“Regarding the story posted by The Athletic earlier today, the Houston Astros organization has begun an investigation in cooperation with Major League Baseball. It would not be appropriate to comment further on this matter at this time.”
