MLB will not strip 2017 Astros, 2018 Red Sox of championships
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – APRIL 09: A 2018 Red Sox World Series Champion banner hangs on the Fenway Park facade before the Red Sox home opening game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Fenway Park on April 09, 2019. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
98.5 The Sports Hub staff report
Much to the chagrin of the L.A. City Council, the Boston Red Sox will not have to take down their 2018 World Series banner and award it to the Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed on Wednesday.
“Whatever the impact of the sign-stealing was, it could have changed who was in the World Series,” Manfred said during an appearance on FOX Business. “[But it’s] absolutely unclear that the Dodgers would have been the World Series champion.
“I think there’s a long tradition in baseball of not trying to change what happened. I think the answer from our perspective is to be transparent about what the investigation showed and let our fans make their own decision about what happened.”
Manfred’s comments come on the heels of the L.A. City Council ‘urging’ the MLB to strip the 2017 Astros and 2018 Red Sox of their respective championships and instead award them to the Dodgers, the runner-up in both seasons.
Manfred indicated that stripping the Astros of their title would not be part of their punishment, and also noted something that’s highly important when it comes to attempting to strip the Red Sox of their title in the now.
“We haven’t concluded our investigation with the Red Sox, so it’s a little hard to take the trophy away from somebody who hasn’t yet been found to do something wrong,” Manfred offered. “We don’t know what the outcome of that is going to be.”
But no matter the ultimate outcome of the allegations against the Red Sox, it’s now safe to assume it won’t include taking a banner down from Fenway Park.
