Nationals Catcher Kurt Suzuki Accuses Astros of Cheating in 2019 World Series

The Houston Astros claim its illegal sign stealing extended only through the 2017 regular season but Washington Nationals catcher Kurt Suzuki disputes those claims.

The Astros apologized for their illegal sign-stealing as they opened spring training on Thursday, but the scandal is unlikely to fade anytime soon.

Nationals catcher Kurt Suzuki was the latest to chime in on the scandal, telling The Washington Post's Tom Boswell that Houston used its illicit system in the 2019 World Series. 

“We could hear it from their dugout. We heard their whistling. What are you going to do?" Suzuki told Boswell. “I kept thinking, ‘We have to go to the field and work early on our signs in the World Series just to stop their cheating.’ It’s so stupid and so wrong."

The Astros have claimed that their sign stealing extended through only the 2017 regular season. Houston says it ended the practice before winning the first World Series in franchise history in October 2017. 

Houston owner Jim Crane apologized for the team's actions on Thursday but said, "This didn’t impact the game."

"Our opinion is that this didn't impact the game." - Jim Crane

"I didn't say it didn't impact the game." - Jim Crane 55 seconds later pic.twitter.com/MnpPeeTUPL

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) February 13, 2020

Suzuki and the Nationals still defeated the Astros despite the alleged cheating. Washington overcame a 3–2 World Series deficit in 2019 before winning Game 7 in Houston. Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg was named World Series MVP.