Manfred: Ending to the Sox’ sign-stealing probe in sight

The baseball world should know MLB’s findings about the 2018 Red Sox by the end of next week, commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters in Florida on Sunday.

“Not this week, but the following, we should have a decision out,” Manfred said.

MLB began its investigation into the 2018 Red Sox after a report in The Athletic on Jan. 7 that the Sox were illegally using technology in the video replay room to decode and steal signs during 2018, when they won the World Series.

If MLB indeed releases its report on the investigation into the Red Sox at the end of the week of Feb. 28, it’ll have taken about two months in total, the same duration it took MLB to investigate the 2017 Astros.

“We always want the investigations to go as quickly as possible,” Manfred told reporters on Sunday. “Never, however, at the expense of making sure we have pursued every possible lead and done everything we can possibly do to get the facts right. There have been a couple developments in the Boston thing that slowed us down, people who had to have been re-interviewed.”

Manfred confirmed that players were granted immunity “provided they were honest in their answers.”

No matter the findings in the investigation, Manfred said he hopes to implement new rules in 2020 that will “have really serious restrictions about players and personnel access to video in-game.” The rule still needs to be discussed with the players association.