Two players for the Houston Astros, Alex Bregman and Jose Altuve, each apologized Thursday for the role they played in the team’s sign-stealing scandal.
According to ESPN, the players made brief remarks in a press conference held in West Palm Beach, Fla., as the team readies for spring training.
“I am really sorry about the choices that were made by my team, by the organization and by me,” Bregman said. “I have learned from this and I hope to regain the trust of baseball fans.”
Altuve said that the “whole Astros organization feels bad for what happened in 2017,” adding “[I] especially feel remorse for the impact on our fans and the game of baseball.”
The apologies were an about-face from last month, where at the team’s fan fest neither player appeared to show remorse.
Astros owner Jim Crane also spoke briefly on Thursday, vowing to never allow a similar scheme to take place again.
With many calling for additional punishments for the players involved — a national survey by Eagle Hill Consulting found that 90 percent of Americans believe that players should be punished — and others calling for the Astros to be stripped of their World Series title, the Astros are entering spring training in a defensive stance.
Crane’s comments at the press conference reflected the stance of the organization. While he reiterated an apology, he stopped short of calling for additional punishments for the players, and when asked whether the sign-stealing was cheating, Crane said: “We broke the rules. You can phrase that any way you want.”
Crane went on to point out that he took action beyond MLB recommendations by firing manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow in the wake of the sign-stealing revelations.
Crane said that the Astros “cannot change the actions of the past but [are] fully committed in moving forward in the right way.”
Should the players involved in the Houston Astros sign-stealing scheme face additional punishment? https://t.co/VlGm6QzO51
— Athletic Business (@AthleticBiz) February 13, 2020
