Yankees, MLB appeal order to unseal letter about potential sign-stealing scheme
A federal judge gave the New York Yankees until noon on Monday to unseal a 2017 letter from the league that could link them to sign-stealing, but now it appears we won't be finding out what the letter says for a while.
The Yankees, Major League Baseball and MLB Advanced Media have appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit about a federal judge's order to unseal a 2017 letter that could link the team to sign-stealing, according to The Athletic's Evan Drellich.
The Yankees stated that making the letter public would result in "significant reputational injury," Judge Jed Rakoff said Friday, and New York's lawyer argued there's no reason for the letter to be revealed.
The Yankees were investigated in 2017 and were guilty of only minor infractions, but the sealed letter reportedly states otherwise. This was the same investigation where the Boston Red Sox were proved guilty of using Apple Watches to relay signs, but the specifics of the Yankees' side of things weren't revealed at the time.
This is only the latest information regarding sign-stealing in MLB. The Houston Astros were busted for a major scandal that saw Jeff Luhnow and A.J. Hinch suspended for a year and subsequently fired by the organization as a result of their involvement in the sign-stealing mess. Former Red Sox manager Alex Cora also was suspended for a year and let go by the Red Sox for his involvement in the Astros disaster, and the New York Mets parted ways with manager Carlos Beltran, who played for the Astros in 2017, before he coached a single game.
Yankees players have been critical of the Astros since learning about the scandal. Retired pitcher C.C. Sabathia noted he felt cheated due to Houston's conduct, and general manager Brian Cashman complained about the Astros having a "distinct advantage" by stealing signs.
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