The New York Mets surprisingly fired manager Carlos Beltran in January for being a part of the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scheme in 2017. Now, new details have revealed just how involved Beltran was in the wrongful behavior during the championship season.
According to The Athletic, Beltran helped create the system that Houston used to steal signs from opponents using video. Beltran’s standing as a 20-year veteran and a future Hall of Famer had a significant influence on the Astros’ young players and even former manager A.J. Hinch and left them feeling unable to stop him, per The Athletic.
Beltran and Alex Cora, who was let go by the Boston Red Sox this offseason for his role in the scheme, also helped create and enforce the trash-can banging system during the regular season and postseason.
After playing for the New York Yankees from 2014-’16, Beltran joined the Astros in 2017 and informed the team that they were “behind the times” regarding stealing opponents’ signs, per The Athletic.
In a rare instance when a few Astros’ players shared their issues with the system to catcher Brian McCann during the season, the veteran talked to Beltran and asked him to stop using the system. However, Beltran and the team continued to use the trash-can banging system throughout the team’s run to the World Series.
The Mets hired Beltran as manager in November with the hope that the 42-year-old could turn a legendary career as a player into one as a skipper. However, the organization moved on from him following MLB’s investigation.
While Beltran is an eight-time All-Star and finished his career with 435 homers and 2,725 hits, the cloud from his role in the Astros’ scheme might prove costly to his chances of joining the Baseball Hall of Fame or ever getting another opportunity to manage.