Unmasked: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Astros Scandal

David McKey: Dislike having to write review

United States on Sep 23, 2023

Chuckles: Some of my key good and bad takeaways from the book:

Not sure I buy this early line: “The scandal that destroyed careers”… hardly. Hinch is managing again, as is Cora. Beltran and the Mets mutually agreed he would not become their manager as planned, but could be back in baseball anytime. He faced no suspension or fine, nor did any player. Luhnow, who didn’t even come up through baseball but instead came from the business world has moved on succesfully. Whose career was destroyed?

He does a great job putting the scandal in true context, noting that yes, there have been previous incidences and every previous incident was followed by outrage. His analogy that sign stealing has always been around baseball just like fraud has always been around business is astute.

The author sets former Astros GM as the vilain early on. In his background on Luhnow, he describes his previous employer as more or less an evil corporation, and I guess that means Luhnow is too by extension. One silly inclusion is noting that his previous employer worked with Enron and the Saudi government, which was behind the murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The company...

United States on Oct 08, 2022

Jackley: Mr. Martino presents deep knowledge in the intracacies of the game within the game of baseball- exciting interest in older fans and yet making it wholely accessible to a younger generation! He sparks an intense interest and keeps pumping you with history while making it fun, accessible and a great learning experience even if you've been away from the game for a long time!

United Kingdom on Dec 04, 2021

Thomas P..: It’s obvious a lot of time and research went in to writing this book but as the title says very tedious.

One thing the book shows is how pathetic the MLB office is, and especially Commissioner Manfred. As a former Investigator I can tell you that you never give blanket immunity to a group. It just shows they lack investigative skill. Year after year when MLB investigators supposedly investigated they came up with, “nothing found.” The bottom line is MLB, Manfred in particular wanted nothing to do with the scandal since it would reflect on their empire. Well guys it happened on your watch, so you own it.

All of you as well as all of the Astros in the game during that tenure should be forced to go the the way of the early 1900’s “Black Sox.”

United States on Sep 06, 2021

人工芝: ヒューストン・アストロズのサイン盗み事件は、いつも間にやら大問題にならずに終息させてしまった大リーグ。どうしてだろうと、ずっとモヤモヤしていた。とくに関わった選手が処分されないことが理解できなかった。本書には、アストロズに限らず、サイン盗みが大リーグで横行している事実に加え、アストロズ事件に関わった人物、誰が何をどうやったのか、など詳細な記述がある。すごい取材だ。大谷さんも、そんな世界でよくがんばってるなと思った。とにかく、読み始めると止まらない。

Japan on Aug 09, 2021

Patrick Conklin: Andy Martino does an absolutely terrific job investigating this scandal that shook the game of baseball to it's core. Easily presented, the first few chapters give brief instances of sign stealing in the game, dating back as far as 1900. Then we get into the meat and potatoes of why you're truly reading this book: The Houston Astros. The main players are identified (A.J. Hinch, Alex Cora, Carlos Beltran, and Jeff Luhnow), along with the teams most prolific players (Alex Bregman, Carlos Correa, and Jose Altuve). Martino divests chapters into Hinch's, Cora's, Beltran's, and Luhnow's backstory, which is appreciated, as I didn't know much about any one of them off the baseball field. The book details the extreme pressure and toxic environment Jeff Luhnow and his team created in Houston. Always searching for new and "innovative" ways to get an edge on the rest of the league. This "forced" an intern to create the program Codebreaker and they were off. The team attempts to justify their cheating believing, unfoundedly mind you, other teams in the league were doing it and they were just trying "to keep up." Once past the backstories of the main players, the book then goes season by season...

United States on Jul 01, 2021

John W.: I am a baseball fan but certainly not a baseball junkie. I was aware of the Astro’s cheating scandal, read a few articles on it, but did not have a deep understanding. I was interested to learn more as this incident seemed to be right up there with the Black Sox scandal, steroids, and Pete Rose gambling, as threats to the integrity of the game. As the author points “fans must believe that the game they are watching is an honest competition”… gives great context to the scandal overall and makes for a very interesting read. I found it very informative and it is clear a great deal of research was done to separate the fact from the unfounded rumors that were reported on at the time. A chance to do that research and place the story in historical perspective in an entertaining way is much appreciated. I really like a sports book that takes the game you love and draws you in to the story. I enjoyed reading this book and look forward to seeing how baseball continues to respond to attempts to keep the competition fair.

United States on Jun 09, 2021