Yankees latest to be accused of stealing signs

A federal judge ordered the unsealing of a 2017 letter from Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred to the New York Yankees that, according to court documents, detailed a “more serious sign-stealing scheme” than the league initially revealed that September.

The Yankees and Major League Baseball have until Monday at noon to submit “a minimally redacted version” of the letter, according to the 12-page memorandum order filed in the Southern District of New York.

The letter itself might not be unsealed until June 19 so the Yankees can file an emergency appeal, which club attorney Jonathan Schiller said is pending. The team says releasing the letter would inflict “significant reputational injury.”

Awoken Saturday morning to the news circulating on social media, Astros players from the 2017 team reacted with a cornucopia of GIFs on Twitter. Pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. tweeted one of a woman laughing hysterically. Outfielder Josh Reddick posted wrestler Hulk Hogan leaning into a crowd urging them to make noise.

“Wait … what,” tweeted shortstop Carlos Correa, a jab at Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, who tweeted the exact words when news of Houston’s sign-stealing scheme broke last November.

The letter in question was obtained during the discovery phase of a $5 million class-action lawsuit brought by DraftKings players against the league, the Astros and Boston Red Sox in the wake of the sign-stealing revelations earlier this winter.