The Astros held a press conference today to "apologize" for their sign stealing scandal that helped win them the World Series in 2017. It couldn't have gone worse.
Jim Crane, the Astros owner, said that the cheating was against the rules and therefore the team was sorry, but that the scandal didn't "impact the games."
Wow, that's tough to say with a straight face.
What's the actual penalty though? The Astros had to fire their manager and GM, pay a fine, and get raked over the coals publicly for a hot second. As bad as they look, and they do look bad, I think every Astros fan would say that it was worth it.
Sure, the 2017 Astros will always be looked at as "cheaters." Baseball fans will always think of the them as illegitimate champions. You can't take the parade away, though. The banner will still remain. The celebration happened. Those players and fans experienced the joy.
I'm a big WVU fan. They've never won a national championship in football or in basketball. If they cheated to get one, I think I'd be okay with it. Truly. It would be tainted, and maybe the rest of the country wouldn't buy it, but at least I'd get to live through the experience.
Hell, the Astros spend money, build from within, AND cheat. The Pirates don't do any of those things. I'd honestly be happy if they did any of the three. At least that would show me that they care.
The Penguins don't have to cheat, and that's how I'd rather my team win a championship. But, hypothetically, if it came down to my team not winning a championship or winning one by cheating, sign me up for the parade.
Look, the Astros organization is filled with a whole bushel of dicks, but Rob Manfred didn't take away the championship.
Call them immoral. Call them cheaters, liars, crooks. Use whatever verbiage you want. But they're champions. I think I'd be cool if my team did the same thing.