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The Upper Deck

Welcome to The Upper Deck, Baseball America’s daily look at the biggest stories around the game and some lighter fare.

BAD APPLES?

Major League Baseball confirmed a report by The New York Times that the Red Sox used electronic devices to steal signs from the Yankees and relay them to players in the field. Commissioner Rob Manfred said MLB’s investigation is ongoing and expected to be completed by the end of the year.

The Yankees filed a complaint against the Red Sox on July 18, ESPN reported. MLB does not have a policy against sign stealing, Manfred said, but the use of an electronic device—the Times reported that Apple’s iWatch was used—in the dugout to do so is against league rules.

“We actually do not have a rule against sign-stealing,” Manfred told ESPN. “It has been a part of the game for a very, very long time. To the extent that there was a violation of the rule here, it was a violation by one or the other (team) that involved the use of electronic equipment. It’s the electronic equipment that creates the violation. I think the rule against electronic equipment has a number of policy reasons behind it, but one of them is we don’t want to escalate attempts to figure out what a pitcher is going to throw by introducing electronics into that mix.

“To the extent there was a violation on either side, we are 100 percent comfortable that it’s not an ongoing issue, that if it happened, it is no longer. I think that’s important from an integrity perspective going forward.”

Sources told ESPN potential penalties are likely fines and suspensions, but likely not a loss of draft picks.

STORMY WEATHER

Hurricane Harvey’s powerful wind and rain forced the Astros to move their series against the Rangers to Florida. Now Hurricane Irma is shaking up the sports landscape. With the Category 5 storm bearing down on Florida, the Rays could be forced to move their series against the Yankees, which starts Monday. The Marlins are on the road starting Thursday, with Irma set to touch down Friday.

BASEBALL’S (NEARLY) BACK

Boise State, which in April said it was bringing baseball back after a nearly 40-year absence, announced the start of a national search for a baseball coach. Athletic director Curt Apsey said he hopes to field a team in the Mountain West conference by 2020. Boise State dropped baseball in 1980.

IN THE GENES

It’s not a surprise that tennis stars Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf produced athletic offspring. But it won’t be tennis balls their eldest son is hitting. Jaden Agassi, 15, committed to play baseball at Southern Cal in 2020, provided he’s not drafted and signed by a big league team. The 6-foot-2 Agassi, the Los Angeles Times reported, is being recruited as a two-way player, but most coaches and scouts believe that his future on the mound. The righthander’s fastball was clocked at 87 mph at the Perfect Game West MLK Championship in Arizona in January.

HAIR DON’T

Apparently, Bryce Harper is done with his flow for now. Out since Aug. 12 with a knee injury, the Nats right fielder found a way to spend his time on Tuesday.

FIRST HIT

J.P. Crawford got the call Tuesday to make his major league debut against the Mets and in a 9-1 win got his first big league hit out of the way. Crawford, a shortstop by trade, played third base on Tuesday.

BASE-KETBALL

We knew Louisville could pitch and hit, but who knew they could pass like that?

In a video posted on the team’s Twitter account, @UofLBaseball, a pool party shows the Cardinals doing what every good team does: making the extra pass. Eleven passes led to an easy dunk. Just how they drew it up!

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