FROM THE CHEAP SEATS – A real apology?

Have you ever had someone do you wrong and then make a hap-hazard apology, if you want to call it that? I got into an argument once with a friend and things got heated and words were said. I went to this individual a week or so later and apologized for my role in the situation and instead of him apologizing he said to me, “I could have handled things a bit differently.” That’s it. No, yeah, I’m sorry as well or I’m just as much at fault as you were. Nope. Nada. “I could have handled things a bit differently.” I don’t care what anyone says, that’s not an apology. According to the dictionary, an apology is a regretful acknowledgement of an offense or failure. There was no remorse. There was no acknowledgement of an offense.

The Houston Astros recently found themselves in the same dilemma as my friend. After getting busted for their role in the sign-stealing scandal that is rocking baseball right now, owner Jim Crane stated, “The only thing we can do is sit here and say we’re sorry, we’re going to move forward in a positive way.” Crane also stated that batters knowing the pitch before it was thrown could or could not be an advantage. Sure, the players still had to hit the ball, but it seems like it would be a lot easier if they knew what pitch was coming at them.

Astros 2nd baseman Jose Altuve stated, “We especially feel remorse for the impact on our fans and the game of baseball, and our team is determined to move forward, to play with intensity and to bring back a championship to Houston.” Not really seeing an apology there either. They seem to be apologizing, if you can call it that, because they got caught.

It doesn’t help when Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred gave the players immunity. Sure, the Astros manager and general manager have been fired and are banned from baseball for a year, but nothing is happening to the players. I suspect that if they punished players, they would call out other players and teams that are doing similar things.

Stealing signs is nothing new in baseball. A guy gets on 2nd and tries to see the signs and signal them to the batter.  The Astros just took it to another level. Maybe someone should have said something before whistleblower Mike Fiers called them out. Fiers was a member of the 2017 Astros team that beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series. It’s interesting to me that Fiers was left off of the 2017 postseason roster for the Astros.

This season will be interesting for the Astros. Most players feel as though the Astros players should have punished. So it appears that opposing pitchers will take things into their own hands one the season starts, something we’re already seeing a bit of during spring training. It’s amazing that a pitcher that intentionally hits a batter will probably be punished more than a player who gave the game a black eye because of cheating!

–Rob Mooney, Metro Voice sports writer

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