Houston Astros Cheating Scandal to be Featured On the Big Screen

Called 'The Astros Edge,' the documentary will premiere the same night the AL and NL Wild Card playoffs begin.

The Houston Astros and its sign-stealing scandal will be the subject of an upcoming Frontline documentary on PBS.

Called “The Astros Edge: Triumph and Scandal in Major League Baseball,” the documentary will premiere on PBS stations on Oct. 3. The date is also the start of the American League and National League Wild Card playoffs series.

The documentary will air on Houston-area PBS station TV 8 at 9 p.m. on Oct. 3. It can be viewed three hours early on the PBS app.

In its promotional materials, Frontline described the documentary as "the making of one of the best teams and worst scandals in modern MLB history, the limited accountability and how Astros baseball changed the sport."

The Houston Astros won their first World Series in 2017, making them the first Texas-based MLB team to win the title. But, in the aftermath of the championship, a scandal emerged that has made the team one of the most hated in the game.

An MLB investigation revealed that the team stole signs using live video feeds. Once the signs were determined, they were then relayed to the dugout using a system that included the banging of a trash can to signal certain pitches. The Astros used that system for the 2017 regular season and postseason, along with part of the 2018 regular season.

It took two years for the scandal to fully emerge and at the time the Astros were seeking a second World Series title in 2019 against the Washington Nationals. The Astros lost the series. They returned to the World Series in 2021 and lost to the Atlanta Braves, before winning their second World Series last year.

The Astros were ultimately fined $5 million and forced to forfeit their first- and second-round draft picks in 2020 and 2021. In addition, the team’s general manager, Jeff Luhnow, along with manager A.J. Hinch were each suspended for the entire 2020 season.

Among those that will appear in the documentary will be “Astroball” author Ben Reiter.