Letter Reveals, Yes, Yankees Cheated Too

On Tuesday, Major League Baseball's famed Yankees Letter, which has been kept under wraps since 2017, was disclosed.

The notice by MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred targeted activity by the Yankees between 2015-16 that drew concerns over their potential use of video replay to recognize and steal signs.

Interesting that it was kept under wraps this long. Interesting that it seems much ado about nothing. At least, that’s how it’s being spun in some circles.

Manfred's letter to Yanks GM Brian Cashman also addressed that the team utilized a dugout phone for communicating the opposing team's signs.

However, the letter did not elucidate any details that put the team at serious fault, contrary to the Houston Astros' infamous sign-stealing.

Since 2017, the Yankees fought to keep the letter discrete and from the purview of baseball. The Yankees filed an appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to keep the letter from going public. The Court rejected the team's request last week: leaving the contents of the letter to be disclosed by the MLB.

In the mid-to-late 2010s, Manfred wanted to set strict precedence against sign-stealing and any other form of unfair advantage by a team.

According to the letter, the Yankees were fined $100,000 for their activity.

New York fought to keep the letter private, citing "significant reputational injury." Regardless of their preference, the letter's contents proved to be less severe than Manfred and the League led on.

Stay tuned with OutKick as more details emerge from this story.

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