Brian Cashman: Astros' Sign Stealing Impacted Yankees "Without Question"

TAMPA, Fla. – Another member of the Yankees' family has spoken out on the Houston Astros' sign-stealing scandal. General manager Brian Cashman addressed the subject Friday afternoon, sharing similar sentiments to that of the club's players and manager.

"Obviously we’re upset," Cashman said. "Our ownership is upset, our front office is upset, our players that were with us in 2017 especially are upset and understandably so."

Cashman's comments come just one day after Astros' owner Jim Crane revealed that he didn't believe stealing signs had any sort of impact on the game's results before backtracking on the statement moments later.

When asked if he believes taking opponent's signs – as Houston was proven to have done in 2017, courtesy of Major League Baseball's thorough investigation – was a direct competitive advantage, Cashman said it impacted the Yankees "without question."

"The Houston Astros were dealing with a distinct advantage more so than their opponents," Cashman explained. "That’s a fact. I don’t think anybody can disagree with that. Even though they may try."

READ: Gerrit Cole reveals he was unaware of sign-stealing scheme while in Houston

New York was eliminated by the Astros in the 2017 ALCS – Houston went on to win its first World Series title in franchise history. The Bombers' GM praised those involved in unearthing the details of this controversy, creating an "environment of fair play" around the sport.

"I give a great deal of credit to a lot of people out there," he said. "Whether it was the whistle-blower or obviously people in free press who tried to dig deep and maybe find truths that are harder for other people to find."

Although Cashman explained that he can't speak for other organizations and how the scandal is being handled, he assured that he's doing his best to maintain a culture in the Yankees clubhouse where his players and staff follow the rules and do their best to win.

Gerrit Cole, Aroldis Chapman, Gary Sánchez and Luis Severino – as well as skipper Aaron Boone – have all already spoken out regarding Houston's cheating scheme in these first few days of Spring Training. To Cashman, he has no problem with members of the Yankees sharing their thoughts, so long as they can eventually find a way to put it behind them.

"I think everybody has the right to speak to this subject matter and what’s real to them. Speak their truth," he explained. "Then find the time sooner or later to turn the page and move forward because it’s all you can do at this point."

New York continues to progress toward the 2020 season, a campaign featuring lofty expectations. Cashman believes that no matter how problematic this situation is, moving forward is the "healthiest thing to do."

"Obviously we’ve worked very hard to create a window of winning," Cashman explained. "There’s no guarantees as to how long those windows are open and so we’re still focused on trying to push through that final tier of our window of opportunity and our efforts to become a world champion again. I think that’s the healthiest focus we can have now."

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