Joe Kelly isn’t sure he’ll ever be able to get over the Astros’ foul play.
Kelly offered his blunt two cents on Houston’s sign-stealing saga during a recent appearance on “The Big Swing” podcast, hosted by fellow Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Ross Stripling. The right-hander explained he was — and still is — most irritated by Astros players being given full immunity in exchange for their cooperation with Major League Baseball’s investigation into the matter.
“The people who took the fall for what happened is nonsense,” Kelly said, as transcribed by ESPN. “Yes, everyone is involved. But the way that (sign-stealing system) was run over there was not from coaching staff. … They’re not the head boss in charge of that thing. It’s the players. So now the players get the immunity, and all they do is go snitch like a little (expletive), and they don’t have to get fined, they don’t have to lose games.”
“When you take someone’s livelihood … to save your own ass, that’s what I don’t like. Cheating? They cheated. Everyone knows they’re cheaters. They know they’re cheaters. It’s over. That’s done with. But now they mess it up by ruining other people’s lives, so they (expletive) it up twice. … When you taint someone’s name to save your own name, this is one of the worst things that you could probably do. … That really friggin’ bugs me. I think I’ll be irritated forever.”
Many believed Kelly was showcasing his ire toward the Astros on July 28 when he threw behind both Alex Bregman and Carlos Correa. The LA reliever initially was hit with an eight-game suspension for his actions, though the punishment ultimately was reduced to five contests.
