ARLINGTON, Texas _ The following is about the MLB investigation into the Houston Astros' alleged high-tech sign-stealing scandal, not the MLB investigation into the Astros' culture issues in light of a former executive's insensitive outburst directed toward four female reporters.
MLB is not investigating why Reid Ryan appears to have been unceremoniously dumped as team president, though unabashed nepotism by owner Jim Crane seems like the leading cause.
Hey, it's hard to keep track of what the Astros have stepped in these days.
The focus of late has been almost all about their alleged cheating, which again was shoved to baseball forefront this week during the MLB owners meetings at the Live! by Loews hotel.
Commissioner Rob Manfred did his best to not reveal any conversations he had this week with Crane, or to speculate about what punishments he might dole out to the Astros franchise and the club personnel who orchestrated all the alleged cheating.
He said less Thursday as the meetings ended than he did Tuesday after touring Globe Life Field, where he suggested that he has the authority to impose harsh penalties against the Astros for jeopardizing the integrity of the game.
New news Thursday is that the Astros aren't simply being investigated for 2017, when the alleged cheating is thought to have started. All the Astros did that season was win the World Series.
Manfred said the Astros' 2018 and 2019 seasons will also be picked apart, and he hopes to have the issue buttoned up by the start of spring training.
That might be pushing things, but perhaps Manfred doesn't want the Astros to get too far into preparations for the 2020 season before, say, sweeping the legs of general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch.
It seems all forms of baseball punishment _ from the loss of draft picks and international bonus money, to heavy fines levied to the teams, to suspending club personnel _ are at Manfred's disposal.
"Our clubs, all 30 of them, recognize that the integrity of the competition on the field is crucial to what we do," Manfred said. "There is wide support across the industry for the idea that when we have a problem in this area there should be firm, serious disciplinary action."
The Astros, or another team that might potentially be caught using video to steal signs or any high-tech other scheme, were warned in September 2017 to not step out of bounds. Manfred fined the Boston Red Sox for using Apple Watches to relay stolen signs to players, and warned then that future punishments would be much harsher.
Maybe the Astros dropped that statement into the trash can they were banging to relay signs to hitters. They were already allegedly running afoul of the rules.
"I take myself seriously," Manfred said. "I wrote what I wrote because I did not believe the disciplines that had been handed out in the past were in line with the significance of the issues we were dealing with.
"The clubs were on notice. We know in at least one incident it probably wasn't heeded. I think we know that now."
It appears we can dispense with "alleged."
The Astros, it appears, are going to get hit hard.
