Opinion
MLB contradicted its ethical stance by rushing Steve Cohen's ownership approval
“Baseball having just gotten through this huge ethical scandal. We've cleaned up the game. We've kicked Jeff Luno out for a year. We've kicked the manager out. We really care about ethics. And then they turn around and they rush through the approval process. A …”
Assertion Supported
Carlos Beltrán and Alex Cora led the Astros' sign-stealing scheme
“There was this specific makeup of the Astros clubhouse, in which one veteran in particular, one coach in particular, Carlos Beltran and Alex Cora, had a lot of influence in there. And in most ways, that influence was exerted in really positive ways, as far as …”
Insight
Sports team equity appreciation accrues entirely and tax-free to franchise owners
“Sports teams like never go down in valuation and people never want to sell them. So The entirety of that valuation goes to the owner. That's not shared with anybody else who helped create the wealth. Like players don't get stock or equity in the franchises the…”
Opinion
Houston Astros remain a model for the pitfalls of high-performing organizations
“I would argue that the Astros remain a model organization. Right? An organization that we can learn from. But now we can learn a lot of different things, besides how to turn the laughing stock of sports into a champion in a few short years. We can learn about …”
Assertion Supported
MLB's investigation report explicitly absolved Houston Astros owner Jim Crane
“The commissioner, in the very first paragraph, actually, which stuck out like a red thumb to me, the very first paragraph of this nine-page report completely absolved the owner of the team, Jim Crane, from any responsibility or accountability whatsoever.”
Assertion Supported
MLB investigators could not prove GM Jeff Luhnow knew of cheating
“Major League Baseball, as I said, did an extensive investigation into this. Even they couldn't prove that Jeff Luno knew. You know, they looked at tens of thousands of emails and texts and They interviewed, like, dozens and dozens of witnesses, many of whom pr…”
Assertion Supported
Electronic sign stealing in MLB was not limited to the Astros
“Sign stealing was not at all limited to the Astros, right? Nobody believes they're the only team doing it. They might've been pushing it farther than anybody else, but they weren't alone.”
Insight
MLB commissioner acts as an executive beholden to team owners
“A lot of people think of the commissioner as this almost like judge like figure presiding over the game, looking out for the good of the sport above all else, like a steward. That's not what he is. I mean, Rob Manfred has even described himself as almost a CEO…”
Assertion Supported
EEOC report documented systemic discrimination at Jim Crane's logistics company
“He had, the EEOC had issued a hundred page report some years earlier documenting discrimination within his companies. Hiring practices that were discriminating against minorities, that were discriminating against women.”
Assertion Supported
A manager at Jim Crane's company was imprisoned for war profiteering
“There was a manager at his company who had been sent to jail for war profiteering.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Most opposing pitchers did not hear the Astros' trash can banging
“They did this to over a hundred pitchers that year. Some of these guys, like guys with 20 years of experience, most of them didn't hear it down in the field, etc.”
Insight
MLB revenue sharing and rising valuations disincentivize teams from winning
“Winning is, in baseball in particular, kind of less incentivized than you would think. So there's plenty of teams out there who don't seem to be trying to win very hard. They'll do anyway because of the revenue sharing structure, because of just the fact that …”
Insight
Extreme analytical efficiency makes modern baseball an aesthetically stagnant product
“The most perfect, efficient base version of baseball means nothing happens, essentially. As you say, it's a lot of strikeouts. Hitters sell out to hit home runs. Fielders shift so that when hitters don't hit home runs, they'll be in perfect position to catch t…”
Insight
MLB playoff share voting incentivized low-paid video staff to facilitate cheating
“The players were also responsible for voting on who else got a cut of these playoff shares, which non-players. And those could include people like the guys who worked in the video room who were helping the players out all year. And these are guys who make 50,0…”
Opinion
English soccer lags years behind Major League Baseball in data analytics
“I've actually gotten a lot of reach out from England, from English soccer people, and people who work for teams, about the Astros, because that industry is a few years behind.”
Opinion
Astros' championship was ultimately sealed by executive gut calls over analytics
“I really think what tipped them ultimately was the fact that essentially their gut was what made the final call, like Jeff Luno making informed but gut decisions to really put the finishing touches on this champion, whether you look at
Acquiring Justin Verland…”
Assertion Supported
Astros owner Jim Crane ran team payroll under $30M during rebuild
“Fighting a Off the union and media who are kind of ripping him for running a payroll that was under thirty million dollars at one point, like embarrassingly low.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Astros drafted Carlos Correa over Byron Buxton for unquantifiable psychological grit
“To Luno, you know, this is the sort of unquantifiable, like, grit, drive. Growth mindset type of things that they look for. So the scouting side of things really tipped that away from somebody like Byron Buxton, who was, you know, probably consensus number one…”
Assertion Not publicly verifiable
Astros evaluate prospect academic grades to assess growth mindset and coachability
“Like, they do certainly select four players who they believe have that growth mindset, and in fact, one of the things they look for is good grades, funny enough, for baseball players.
I think good grades are a real indicator of a willingness to learn, which I…”
Opinion
Ben Reiter: Reports of baseball's business demise are exaggerated
“I'm somebody who thinks that reports of baseball's demise are kind of exaggerated. It is a different sort of business from the NFL and the NBA to which it's always compared. It's a much more local business. It's much more like steady business. You know, it's o…”
Assertion Supported
Houston Astros ran two concurrent sign-stealing schemes in 2017
“There are actually two sign stealing schemes going on at once. One was happening in the video room. One was happening among the players.”
Assertion Supported
Bob Feller used a WWII telescope to steal signs in Cleveland
“Bob Feller, the great Indians pitcher, Went to World War II. He interrupted his career for three years to go on a ship in the Pacific, and he brought back this high-powered telescope, and he had it installed in center field in Cleveland Stadium, and they would…”
Assertion Partly supported
Jim Crane faced a $5M fine but retained his championship and equity
“He was fined five million dollars, right? That's the maximum fine that an owner can receive in baseball. He lost a few draft picks, but keeps his ring, keeps his players, keeps the franchise valuation.”
Opinion
Astros' sign-stealing was a symptom of an extreme drive for efficiency
“And I think when I look back at it now, the sign stealing scheme is a symptom of that.”
