FanPost

The Astros Buzzer Scheme- Devilishly Ingenious

Every time an Astros player or official gets asked a buzzer question, they categorically deny it or ignore it, just like they ignored and mocked the trash can accusations made by other teams and players for months and months on end.... until it was shown.

There is a lot of compelling cases to be made for one-- Jose Altuve being Exhibit A for such charges. The apparent bulge in his chest, the adamant yelling for his teammates not to remove his shirt during the ALCS walkoff, his running into the dugout and down the tunnel as the other Astros went wild on the field, and his weird explanation to Ken Rosenthal that "I got in trouble with my wife"... Yet a cursory look at his social media posts show him shirtless every bit as often as clothed! And a YouTube search of previous game walkoffs show that he has had no problems with the celebratory custom of ripping his jersey off. All this is compelling, but there's nothing I've seen so far that can convict beyond reasonable doubt.

However I argue that proof may well already exist, in the form of YouTube footage of Robinson Chirinos during the 2019 World Series vs. Patrick Corbin. I'll let the video do the explaining; there's no audio, but you dont need any. https://www.google.com/search?q=robinson+chirinos+buzzer&oq=robinson+chirinos+buzzer&aqs=chrome..69i57.7810j0j9&client=ms-android-att-us-revc&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8

Watch the very first video on this lineup and you'll very quickly see what I believe is the most damning evidence since the bangs heard by Danny Farquhar. That most definitely wasn't regular gripping tape allowed on baseball bats nor the special stickers put on the barrel. I, like so many who have scrutinized every second of that footage, feel that we have proof of the buzzer scheme that so many players and fans charge Houston has used

The buzzer scheme is freaking devilishly ingenious. That Chirinos incident shown in YouTube during the World Series highlights how effectively the team could use it without anyone noticing. We likely wouldn't have any evidence if it hadn't bounced off when he took that big hack.

There's no way you can make me believe the Astros simply stopped cheating after 2017. Cheaters don't arbitrarily stop, and the team hadnt been caught. I feel the team simply got smarter and more advanced in the manner they operated. The use of a buzzer would be the perfect technological upgrade over the caveman-style bashing of a garbage can. Crowds can be loud, especially in a playoff game, and the noises can drown out the banging on a can or distort the relay. Whistling wouldn't be as effective either due to the same sounds coming from fans. Enter a buzzer, which quietly give a batter's body the magic code despite surround-sound and distractions.

Think about it: a buzzer, small and round, is snugly taped to the depression at end of the bat barrel or onto the torso under the padding and jersey. The video decoder, who already knows the signs, scrutinizes the live footage like before. The second the pitcher/catcher duo's offering is agreed upon, the decoder presses the button... and a silent but sure message is sent. One buzz for a changeup, two for a breaking ball, or none for a fastball (I'm using the trash can sequences here). The batter instantly feels the vibration(s) and in a nanosecond knows whether he will swing or not, before the ball leaves the pitcher's hand.

I have to hand it to the Astros organization, they are a clever bunch. The more I learn and hear about their schemes, I actually feel almost as impressed with them as I am livid. They're diabolical geniuses. But if and when this buzzer charge gets proven, I believe MLB can take no other recourse than to ban the cheating SOBs who still insist on covering up or watering down their activities, even though we now know it was players who initiated and executed the plan-- with executive knowledge. What a sorry and dark state of affairs for baseball.

FanPosts are user-created content and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Pinstripe Alley writing staff or SB Nation.