Minnesota Twins Dismiss Sign-Stealing Allegation by Fan
Tony Faust is a fan of Minnesota Twins and their catcher Joe Mauer. He doesn't play baseball, nor is he a scout. He's a graphic designer. So when Faust saw video that he believed shows Joe Mauer stealing signs from the Detroit Tigers, he decided to annotate it, upload it and let the world witness just how slick his favorite player really is.
One problem: The Minnesota Twins say it’s a bunch of malarkey.
As they prepared for the finale of a pivotal four-game series against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday, the Twins had to confront something positively 2009: a fan, one with a minimal baseball background at that, accusing the likely American League MVP of standing on second base and blatantly relaying signals to home plate to give batter Jason Kubel an idea of the next pitch.
Kubel laughed at the implication that Joe Mauer was tugging at his helmet as a means of subterfuge. Twins manager Ron Gardenhire denied it, saying with such obvious sign-stealing “somebody would get killed.” First baseman Justin Morneau insisted on talking to the media to underscore the ludicrousness of the allegations.
