The Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees had a notable flashpoint earlier in May over Aaron Judge getting information on tipped pitches from the bench. The Blue Jays were definitely unhappy over the entire situation, but pitcher Chris Bassitt offered an honest assessment of what actually happened.
In an appearance on “The Chris Rose Rotation” podcast, Bassitt admitted that the Blue Jays were well aware that Judge was getting tipped pitches, and that the Yankee slugger did not tell the truth about it after the game. However, he also admitted that nothing about it was actually illegal.
“We knew it was going on. They knew we were tipping, and they were relaying tips,” Bassitt said. “Is that illegal? No, it’s not illegal. Is it kind of in that gray area of, alright, if the first base and third base coach are having to relay tips, should that be allowed? You can argue that back and forth all you want.
“Judge’s response to it? I had no problem with it. Was it a lie? Yeah, it was a lie. What do you want him to do, come out and say, ‘Hey, all their pitchers were tipping, and I’m going to tell them how they’re tipping.’ I just think he kind of made up a story just to basically say, ‘I’m not going to tell them they’re tipping. Why would I say that?'”
This is one of the more measured takes we’ve seen on the situation. It was quite obvious during the plate appearance that Judge was peeking into the dugout, and suspicion only grew when the at-bat ended with a home run. After the game, Judge claimed his glances were because his teammates were chirping at the umpire too much.
Ultimately, as Bassitt said, no one did anything illegal, though some pitchers would certainly take issue with how the Yankees went about relaying their information. If Bassitt is willing to say this publicly, it’s a safe bet that the Blue Jays have moved on from the whole affair at this point.
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