Tensions were high between the Red Sox and Astros at Fenway Park Saturday.
Benches and bullpens cleared after the seventh inning because Astros relief pitcher Hector Neris thought Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story was stealing signs as he stood on second base. Neris intentionally balked Story to third so he could get off second base and presumably stop looking at his grip and communicating to the plate.
Once the inning ended, Neris had some words for Red Sox third base coach Kyle Hudson as both teams headed to their respective dugouts which caused benches to clear. The skirmish deescalated from there with an umpire holding back Neris and both sides quickly moving on.
That didn't stop current NESN analyst and former Red Sox third baseman Will Middlebrooks from taking a nicely-timed shot at the Astros for their history with sign stealing.
"Imagine the Astros being mad about stealing signs," Middlebrooks said on the Boston broadcast. "But guess what? That's part of the game when you can see the grip in a glove."
The Astros were disciplined by the league for illegally using a video camera system to steal signs during games in 2017 and '18. They won the World Series in '17 and were stripped of their first- and second-round picks in '20 and '21 as part of the sanctions. The league suspended general manager Jeff Luhnow and team manager A.J. Hinch for the '20 season for failing to prevent the violations before the two were fired after the punishment was announced.
Of course, the Astros are completely turned over from that time and as another interesting wrinkle, current Red Sox manager Alex Cora was the Astros' bench coach during the '17 season. But it was certainly a fair shot from Middlebrooks because any time sign stealing comes up, you can't help but think of the Astros' scandal.
