I just don’t get this ‘scandal’.
If signs are used in public to communicate with players who are also in public then who cares if someone monitors those signs and decodes them?
If you’re going to send coded messages in public then you need to change your codes somewhat frequently.
Just ask Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto about this and he’ll agree.
They were using video feed of the catcher’s signs in real time and then signaling the batter while he was in the box if off speed or fastball was coming. The Astro’s 2017 chase rate on breaking balls was supposedly pretty low at home.
Your point about changing the codes is right on. Just how dumb are catchers and pitchers? It is down to stubbornness, laziness or dumbness that all catcher’s signs don’t have changing pre-decided indicators that change the signs or the sign order with today’s technology. You base it on inning number or the score or number of outs or anything else that changes. It would completely foil any sort of sign stealing, legitimate or via technological device.
Freegards
signs are not meant to be public. The catcher goes to great lengths to cover the side view with his knees and mitt. The signs given by the manager isn the dugout and the base coaches are not intended to be obvious and are changed periodically.
SNOWFLAKES RULE!!
This ruling makes lipreading, watching the pitcher, and sneak plays all illegal, just like a pitcher balking.
We have now learned that signs are privileged communications.
If you do it with your own eyes and ears, on the field, that is part of the game. If you use technological means to gain an advantage that isn’t available to the other team, that’s cheating.