No matter how much time passes, Alex Cora’s name remains tied to the infamous 2017 Astros cheating scandal. While many of the fans and players have moved on after the incident, the cheating scandal still haunts Cora like nothing else, who used to be the Houston Astros’ coach. On February 14, MLB insider Chris Cotillo shared a heartfelt message by Alex Cora, who believes they have gone through a lot and paid a massive price for their mistake. So what’s the fuss all about?

Let’s have a look at what happened during the 2017 cheating scandal, where the employees working at the Astros video review room started using the live game feed captured in the field cameras to use the opponent team’s signs. The sign sequence capture was decoded, and later an employee would transfer the information to the dugout. This incident attracted the attention of many and drew immense criticism as well.

Alex Cora has gone through a lot since the incident happened, as his involvement was found as well. He called the replay review room to get the sign information. By doing this, the runner could easily decode the catcher’s sign and signal, keeping the batter notified about how to approach earlier, thus gaining the upper hand over the opponents in an unconventional way that is beyond the rulebook. On February 14, MLB insider Chris Cotillo shared a post of Alex Cora on the Astros and Alex Bregman, which stated, “With all those guys, we went through a lot. We’re still going through a lot. We made a mistake in ‘17. Some of us paid the price, and we’re back in baseball. A.J. (Hinch) got a second chance; I did too. Carlos Beltran is being penalized because he did that. He should be a Hall of Famer already. He should be managing, too.”

Cora confessed their mistake and how not only the team suffered but also every player, who had to go through a lot of challenges. He went on to say about AJ Hinch, who got another chance to prove himself; however, Carlos Beltran was penalized, despite him being on the verge of becoming a Hall of Famer. Despite this apology and heartfelt statement, there has been an outrage among the fans, who started lambasting him. Let’s view some of the fans’ reactions!

Fans provide their reactions to the Astros’ cheating scandal

Alex Cora has been under criticism for quite some time since the 2017 cheating scandal that happened. While he penned an honest statement seeking an apology from everyone for the mistake committed, fans cannot keep calm anymore. Going by one fan’s comment, he seems disgusted with the cheating the Astros did. Despite Cora’s best efforts to move on from the subject, it couldn’t be ignored that he, as a bench coach for the Astros in 2017, was involved in the illegal sign-stealing approach to win games, as per the MLB. 

Commenting on the honest apology message shared by Alex Cora after these years, another user on X shared his thoughts of regaining the trust again if the ownership changes and Josh Altuve is gone from the team. Not only there power struggles in the Astros’ front office, but also the owner, Jim Crane, failed to make some useful additions, which might have led to the Astros failing to win the World Series titles. 

One commenter lambasted Alex Cora, asking him to expose every name involved in the cheating scandal. Based on the user’s reaction, there were multiple persons involved in the cheating scandal, and he demanded the exposure of every name involved in this incident. Based on the post, Cora mentioned only a few names, including AJ Hinch and Carlos Beltran; some of them were either penalized or others were given a second chance.

While after all these years, it’s basically not possible to bring out all the names who have moved on or some even retired, an angry fan requested a ban to be imposed on Alex Cora and Carlos Beltran. Based on his response, the incident wouldn’t have happened if Cora and Beltran were not there, so banning them for life with a massive fine would be fair and justified, according to him.

Finally, an ardent fan has sought a solution rather than criticizing anyone for the mistake. Based on his reaction, Cora needs to stop discussing much and rather show results for the Boston Red Sox, where he is the manager currently. It might help him to regain the trust of fans and, at the same time, gradually move on and make his presence count in baseball.

Do you think the way Alex Cora’s heartfelt message received such hate seems justified? Let us know in the comment below.