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Ok, I agree, cheating is lame. But a game in which a someone won by cheating is still competitive, while a game that is lost intentionally is just corruption to

Ok, I agree, cheating is lame. But a game in which a someone won by cheating is still competitive, while a game that is lost intentionally is just corruption to take money from fans. I guess I don't see the big deal about sign stealing. I mean, in some sports, maybe stock car racing or something like that, this kind of thing would be totally encouraged. Squeaky clean compared to doping and what not.

mbreese 7y ago
Cheating to lose and cheating to win are two different things, with very different motivations. However, cheating to win still takes something away from the game. But fundamentally, any sport is based on the principle of a level playing field... that everyone is playing by the same rules. This isn't a case where they stretched the rules, or went right up to the line -- they gained an undeniable advantage using tools that the other teams didn't have. When the batter know the pitch that's coming, you take the most competitive aspect of baseball away.
Uhhrrr 7y ago
You might really like this book - racing has a culture of doing everything possible to push the limits set by the rules and the rule enforcement system. There is plenty of rule bending and mechanical engineering wonkery: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1310615.The_Unfair_Advantage https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1310615.The_Unfair_Advan... For my money, baseball teams should pursue simple encryption schemes where the sign thrown has to be decoded by the pitcher in his head, using as additional parameters the inning, batter, and a special private key agreed upon by the pitcher and catcher before each game.
jaywalk 7y ago
Sign stealing itself is not against the rules, and has been a part of baseball since forever. It's something that can't really be prevented, like when you've got a runner off 2nd base and he can look right at the catcher when he's giving the signs. It's using electronics to steal signs that is against the rules. It's because electronics basically allow you to "perfectly" steal signs, and one of the biggest things in baseball is that the batter doesn't know what the pitcher is about to throw.

mbreese 7y ago

Cheating to lose and cheating to win are two different things, with very different motivations. However, cheating to win still takes something away from the game. But fundamentally, any sport is based on the principle of a level playing field... that everyone is playing by the same rules. This isn't a case where they stretched the rules, or went right up to the line -- they gained an undeniable advantage using tools that the other teams didn't have. When the batter know the pitch that's coming, you take the most competitive aspect of baseball away.

Uhhrrr 7y ago

You might really like this book - racing has a culture of doing everything possible to push the limits set by the rules and the rule enforcement system. There is plenty of rule bending and mechanical engineering wonkery: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1310615.The_Unfair_Advantage https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1310615.The_Unfair_Advan... For my money, baseball teams should pursue simple encryption schemes where the sign thrown has to be decoded by the pitcher in his head, using as additional parameters the inning, batter, and a special private key agreed upon by the pitcher and catcher before each game.

jaywalk 7y ago

Sign stealing itself is not against the rules, and has been a part of baseball since forever. It's something that can't really be prevented, like when you've got a runner off 2nd base and he can look right at the catcher when he's giving the signs. It's using electronics to steal signs that is against the rules. It's because electronics basically allow you to "perfectly" steal signs, and one of the biggest things in baseball is that the batter doesn't know what the pitcher is about to throw.