Yankees’ alleged sign-stealing letter to be unsealed, truth revealed

Here’s what we know: for over a year now, Yankees President Randy Levine has been arguing against the unsealing of a confidential letter reportedly sent to Brian Cashman detailing previous sign-stealing allegations.

The Yankees claim the letter contains more details on their alleged improper use of an Apple Watch back in 2015, as well as their misuse of the dugout phone. Those involved in a Draft Kings lawsuit continue to allege something different, claiming the contents of the letter will prove a coverup from the highest levels of MLB regarding the Yankees’ prior misdeeds.

Whatever the letter contains — scheme or fart noise — is about to be revealed, though, as a U.S. Appeals Court has ruled that the contents of the letter must be unsealed in accordance with the ongoing lawsuit.

Fair? No, nothing’s fair. Somehow, confidential material sent to the Yankees is about to be launched into the public sphere while similar confidential letters sent to the Red Sox and Astros, detailing the full scale of their behavior remain untouched. Boston is allowed to continue with Alex Cora in the dugout, pretending replay coordinator JT Watkins was acting as a lone wolf in their 2018 cheating scheme. Right, right. Yeah. Seems like something JT Watkins would do.

At the very least, though, whether this shows widespread manipulation of technology or nothing of substance — which has been alleged by reporters in the past — the world is about to have some form of an answer.

Even if, yes, being singled out does provide “significant reputational harm,” as Levine has argued.

Yankees sign-stealing letter will be unsealed. Cheating?

Most details of the Astros’ behavior are already public. After this letter is read, only the Red Sox will remain shrouded and hidden. Ain’t that how it always goes? Congratulations, Boston.

While some might’ve clicked this article assuming they’d read an unhinged screed defending the Yankees at all costs, we assure you this is not Astros fandom. If there’s a letter that must be unsealed, let it be so. If the Yankees are lying about the extent of their transgressions (seems quite possible!), then the world deserves to know — especially the fans that have milked trash can jokes for all they’re worth as Houston traipsed to yet another World Series, cleanly, in 2021.

According to the judge who initially recommended this letter be unsealed, there’s very little contained here that the MLB world doesn’t already know. Of course, we’ll all see about that soon; this unsealing process will reportedly take up to two weeks:

"U.S. District Court judge Jed S. Rakoff had previously ruled that the letter should be unsealed because much of what was in the letter had already been publicly acknowledged by Major League Baseball."

Fairness would be nice, though. It would be nice for the Yankees to enter a scenario as one of three teams targeted and emerge into a world where all three receive their comeuppance.

The only positives here are that no one in New York can be accused of hiding something after the letter’s out, and that perhaps the Yankees brass has a conscience (unlike those who run the Red Sox) and they relieve Aaron Boone of his duties if this is particularly damning.

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