It’s likely we’ve seen the end of any disciplinary action IMO.
Not quite.
Cora’s suspension (or worse) hasn’t been announced yet.
He got fired, but MLB hasn’t meted out punishment.
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The Astros must have thought no one was ever going to notice this was happening.
Closing paragraph of this long article:
This sign-stealing scandal poses by far the greatest threat of Manfred’s commissionership, and a day like Thursday, which introduces something like a buzzer into a landscape ready to believe anything, certainly does no favors. Thursday synopsized what Manfred faces: a scandal that no matter how tidily he tries to bow-wrap it remains, at least for now, maybe forever, amorphous, full of surprises, ever ready to grow another tentacle. It’s represented in the nervous calls of executives wondering if disgruntled ex-employees are saying anything, in the feverish Twitterverse fiending for content, in the opportunity for one man to change baseball history just like Mike Fiers did. It’s there, coiled and poised, all possibility, every day ready to lose its mind like Jan. 16, 2020.
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It won’t happen, but vacating the World Series titles for 2017 and 2018 may…
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One of my friends suggested that Joe Kelly should receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
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I wish he could’ve thrown at Altuve. Joe Kelly…the hero we all need.
Funny how they can’t throw at players but cheating your way to a WS victory with impunity is totally acceptable.
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I actually think 8 games is too light for Joe Kelly, when the incident is evaluated on its own. You simply can’t go at someone’s head, ever. And he did it not once, but twice. True he didn’t hit anyone, but the intent was there. MLB is likely trying to put the kibosh on this by making an example of Kelly (a guy with a past of doing this- that certainly comes into play) so that we can get back to baseball.
Kelly should have gone for a shot to the gut, leg, or arm. The Astros players deserve that. But once you go for a headshot, you become a coward (especially a relief pitcher who under normal rules would never step into a batters box and wont at all under this year’s rules).
I agree 100% that its absurd to give kelly 8 games when compared to what the astros got.
8 games is pretty significant considering that the season was shortened by 100 games. And this kind of stuff happens quite frequently from my experience. It really is part of the game. It is true that what he did was crappy and quite dangerous, but it is part of the game.
With respect, going for a head shot is a grand canyon away from going for the legs, arms, gut, etc. and has never been part of the game and never should be.
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I think in you see behavior like this in every sport. When I was reading your posts I was reminded of a player from the NBA who would intentionally plant his feet under players shooting jump shots that frequently resulted in twisted ankles and sometimes even worse injuries (Bruce Bowen anybody?). That’s a world away from a head injury, but still…
The article below sums up my point. It most definitely has been part of the culture of the game, but it can have horrific consequences, to Ben’s point.
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Ahhh ok. Got ya. Yes. My point i guess is that i think mlb needs to step up and start punishing anything close to a head shot. Like I said, I have very little issue with a plunk on the arm or leg that will likely leave a bruise for a few days at worst. (I do hate that the agressors seem to get an unfair advantage in that the umps often warn both dugouts if someone gets hit by a fastball, giving the other team no course for tit for tat…but thats for another day).
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But that’s the thing. He didn’t go for the head. It could be argued that he intentionally went for him with the fastball, but there’s no mlb pitcher in the world that would intentionally go for the head. JK had control issues all night especially with his breaking ball. At the worst I’d say he was going for them but couldn’t even do that right.
And even his actions after the inning ended weren’t unprompted. The Astros, as usual, instigated that with comments from the plate and the bench. Let’s not forget when Astros players made racist gestures in relation to Yu Darvish’s Asian heritage and laughed about it (while stealing his signs and acting as if it was just because they were better). These guys are cheating punks who are going unpunished. Now that doesn’t mean I condone retribution, but how is it the Dodgers are being penalized heavier than them?
A stolen championship, a stolen mvp trophy, managers and players who lost their job or were demoted to AAA as a result of games played against them, and these guys get off scot-free? I’d be pissed if I was a mlb player as well.
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As a red sox fan, I watched Joe Kelly for nearly 5 seasons through a lot of high highs and a lot of low lows. Inconsistency has plagued him his entire career. And yes he was all over the map with his non-fastballs teh other night…but im sorry, a fastball up high (and behind in the case of Bregman)…thats not a control issue in any way, shape or form.
So you’re saying that he intentionally went for the head with a fastball? I mean you could be right, I never played anything beyond Babe Ruth league, but I can’t think of anyone that would ever do that.
And P.S.
Red Sox suck! 
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Yeah, the brushback pitch is part of baseball, but not the beanball. A pitcher can kill a batter with a beanball.
Here’s a fun video on the subject:
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Ha! This is going to be a long year for my team!
I’m just saying that its mighty suspicious for someone like kelly to “miss” and have the ball go there on two fastballs. And I think mlb made the right call here, generally. I dont think they made teh right call on the astros.
Honestly, I almost didn’t want to watch baseball anymore because what’s the point? A $5mil fine is nothing compared to the revenue you get from being in the playoffs and a World Series, and then the 'stros weren’t even apologetic about it in their statements. Not to mention what they said during Spring Training was infuriating.
So if those are the monetary fines, draft pick penalties and suspension penalties (couple of suspensions for the GM and Coaches), why not cheat? You’re still in the record books, you have a ring and you can just keep going as if nothing happened. My teams got double screwed in that the Dodgers lost the title, and the A’s finished second to the 'stros in the AL West. Steroid users got worst penalties and this was far more egregious.
MLB and the NFL commissioners are terrible.
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I get it, but this applies to college athletics as well. We all know cheating is rampant. The NFL has also had recent cheating scandals. I guess that leaves the NBA? Good thing the NBA starts today!