How Did I Miss This?

 

Like a bolt of lightning, this hit me suddenly and powerfully.   A good friend of mine called.   Knowing how strongly I felt about the 2017 Houston Astros cheating scandal that cost the Dodgers their World Series, he telephoned to ask if I had seen this documentary on PBS's Frontline.

It was news to me.   The really surprising part of that is the film is already 3 years old.  Where was I?   Did this get zero press?

The story is there and all true.   We've all known about the trash can banging and sign stealing, etc..   But we never heard it to the detail that it's brought to life in this film by baseball journalist Ben Reiter.

Indeed, a lot of the film is thanks to some young baseball geek who got a job with the Houston Astros when they became "data-driven."   You want to see a whistle blower in action?   Listen to what this guy reveals.   It's old news, but still very old news.   I was angry all over again, especially in the way that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred doled out the punishment for this crime.

This documentary reminded me once again that scumbag Carlos Beltran, then with the Astros, masterminded the whole caper.  Did he get what was due him?  Hell, fucking no.   He just got inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame and the Mets Hall of Fame.  Talk about hypocracy.

Personally, I salute Ben Reiter for keeping the story out there, even if it somehow got buried on PBS.

It all brought to mind the very first time the Astros visited Dodger Stadium after 2017.   No matter what men's room you entered, all the urinals had something on the bottom.   A baseball card of a Houston Astro.

Did it make me feel good pissing on Jose Altuve?   You bet it did.

LEN'S RATING:  4 Stars.

Dinner last night:   Hamburger.