TAMPA, Fla. — Masahiro Tanaka feels cheated by the Houston Astros.

Tanaka’s Yankees lost to the Astros in a seven-game AL Championship Series in 2017.

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred found the Astros broke rules against electronic sign stealing in 2017, including during the postseason.

“Yeah, I do feel that way,” the Yankees pitcher said through a translator Monday after working out at the team’s minor league complex.

Houston won all four home games against the Yankees in the playoffs, when the Astros players had the advantage of the sign-stealing system, and lost all three in the Bronx. The scores of the first two games were both 2-1.

“It’s a competition, and the competition should be a fair competition,” Tanaka said. “There was a little bit of thought of, was there something going on and once you hear the news, then it’s like ‘oh, there was actually something going on.'”

Advertisement

Tanaka noted that the Yankees adjusted their pitching sign procedures in last year’s AL Championship Series against Houston.

“We were actually being cautious about it,” Tanaka said. “So, just changing up the signs, making it a little bit more complex.”

Tanaka said it is difficult to say how the recent developments will impact how he looks back at 2017.

“You never know what would have happened, but at the same time you can say that what happened might not have happened,” Tanaka said. “I don’t know if mad is the right word, but it’s something that’s out of the rules. They’re not, obviously, abiding by the rules.”

Tanaka hopes the sanctions placed on the Astros will eliminate the situation in baseball.

ASTROS SUED: Former major league pitcher Mike Bolsinger sued the Houston Astros, claiming their sign-stealing scheme contributed to a poor relief appearance in August 2017 that essentially ended his big league career.

Advertisement

Bolsinger’s suit in Los Angeles County Superior Court seeks unspecified damages for interfering with and harming his career. He’s also asking that the Astros forfeit their nearly $30 million in postseason shares from their 2017 World Series title, with the money going to children’s charities in Los Angeles and a fund for needy retired players.

According to the suit, Bolsinger, then a reliever with the Toronto Blue Jays, was put into a game at Houston on Aug. 4, 2017, and allowed four runs, four hits and three walks in 1/3 of an inning in a 16-7 loss. The suit said the right-hander “was immediately terminated and cut from the team, never to return to Major League Baseball again.”

He was demoted to Triple-A and hasn’t pitched in the major leagues since. He was 0-3 with a 6.31 ERA in 11 appearances with Toronto in 2017. The 32-year-old pitched in Japan in 2018-19, and is seeking a job with a big league club for this season.

The Astros didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Commissioner Rob Manfred found the Astros broke rules against electronic sign stealing in 2017, including during the postseason. Manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow were fired last month.

ANGELS: The Los Angeles Angels’ proposed trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers is officially off.

Angels General Manager Billy Eppler confirmed he won’t be making a widely reported trade, although he didn’t specify the deal or the players involved.

Multiple media outlets reported the Angels nearly acquired Dodgers outfielder Joc Pederson and right-hander Ross Stripling last week in a deal that would have sent infielder Luis Rengifo to the Dodgers.

The deal apparently fell apart as a side effect of the Dodgers’ lengthy attempts to get outfielder Mookie Betts from the Boston Red Sox in a blockbuster trade. Eppler didn’t specify why the Angels’ deal with the Dodgers won’t be happening.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.