Tampa Bay Rays: Heads roll in Houston – Should Alex Cora be banned for life?

Tampa Bay Rays Al East foes, the Boston Red Sox are anxiously awaiting their punishment from the Commissioner’s office after the Astros faced severe punishment for their cheating scandal.

The Tampa Bay Rays and the rest of the baseball world are sitting on the edge of their seats as the punishments unfold for the Astros and (soon-to-be) Red Sox for their use of technology to cheat the game.

The MLB made its ruling on the Astros cheating scandal on Monday and the punishment was harsh. Commissioner Rob Manfried suspended manager AJ Hinch and GM Jeff Lunhow for one year.

Astros’ owner, Jim Crane immediately held a press conference in which he announced the firing of Hinch and Lunhow.

The Astros were also fined $5 million and lost their top two draft picks of the next two seasons.

The system is reported to have begun in 2017 – the year they won the  World Series- in which an employee would monitor a feed (a camera was placed in centerfield and zoomed in) of the catcher’s signals and report off-speed pitches to the batter with a noise. The noise most commonly mentioned was the banging of a trash can.

The Astros eliminated the Rays in five games during the divisional series of the 2019 postseason.

The Yankees accused them of whistling signals during the 2018 ALCS.

The league is holding the managers directly responsible for allowing the culture and actions to exist in the clubhouse.

What’s in store for Alex Cora?

Alex Cora was a bench coach for the Astros during the implementation and use of the cheating system. The report indicated that despite management being aware, the system was player-driven. There was one exception, Alex Cora.

Alex Cora reportedly had the monitor installed in which player’s watched the feed on. He not only participated and helped orchestrate it as a coach,  but set up a similar system of cheating in Boston. He allegedly made us of the video replay room – designed for quick access on challenges – to steal signs.

The Commissioner’s office has not yet handed down a punishment to Cora and the Red Sox, but it is “expected to be harsh.”

We hate when teams undermine the integrity of the game that is so closely tied to the history of our great country. Jackie Robinson didn’t just break down barriers in baseball but across the nation. The Black Sox scandal is still a black eye to fans everywhere.

Perhaps the most disheartening part of this particular cheating scandal is that our 2017 and 2018 World Champions are now forever tainted.

We shall soon find out how harsh the punishment is for our AL East foes and their skipper.

Should he banned for life? Let us know in the comments below.