Widely known as the “Astros sign stealing” or “Astros trash can” breakdown, the above was the direct result of Mike Fiers warning teammates (and ultimately, The Athletic) that the Astros hitters used a video feed which ran from a camera in the outfield to the dugout to decode signs and relay them to hitters during games. Astros players or team staffers watching teh feed would notify the batter which pitch was coming next using a cue (such as banging on a trash can).
Following the allegations, Jomboy pored over hours of Astros footage to see if he could identify signals. When he did, he compiled this breakdown video and published it to his social media channels. The video evidence added fuel to the outrage over the scandal which forced Major League Baseball’s hand to investigate.
Major League Baseball investigated the allegations and determined the Astros employed this strategy during their World Series-winning 2017 season and part of the 2018 season. As a result, Astros manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow were suspended and ultimately fired. The league also fined the team $5 million and stripped them of several draft picks in 2020 and 2021, the strongest sanctions MLB has ever issued against a club.
