Little Leagues organizations weigh use of 'Astros' as team name

More than a decade ago, Little League Baseball Inc. introduced “I won’t cheat” patches to be worn during the Little League World Series.

Some Western Pennsylvania Little League districts are asking themselves, then, if it sends the wrong message if some in-house teams still are named after a franchise sanctioned by MLB for cheating.

There are no plans by area districts to prevent member leagues from naming their teams the “Astros,” even as one district in the northeast corner of the state decided MLB’s Houston Astros no longer are worthy of being represented by its kids.

Just 60 miles east of Williamsport, one Little League director is sending a clear message to his 4,000 players about the Houston Astros and their sign-stealing scam https://t.co/O7FFITYBQd

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None of the four district administrators who preside over Little League districts that cover much of Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler, Indiana, Clarion and Venango counties said there was a push within their ranks to ban “Astros” from their roster of team names.

“That’s beyond the realm of my authority to tell leagues what team names you use,” said Jim Connelly of Pennsylvania’s Little League District 4 that covers much of Allegheny County. “I can’t mandate people not use the Astros’ name. Little League (the international governing body) hasn’t done that. If Little League mandates it, I’ll follow Little League rules.”

Connelly’s wife, Anita, is the district administrator for District 4. Jim serves as the assistant district administrator and umpiring chief.

A winter meeting of District 4’s leagues recently was held at PNC Park. Jim Connelly said the issue of using “Astros” for Little League team names wasn’t even discussed.

“We had the meeting at a Major League Baseball field,” he said, “and nobody brought up the Astros.”

In mid-February, the administrator of District 16/31 (about 60 miles east of Williamsport) took a much different tact. Bob Bertoni “suspended” the Astros name for any of his district’s leagues.

“I think about our Little League pledge. That’s the first thing that comes to my mind. Part of the pledge is, ‘I will play fair and strive to win,’ ” Bertoni told ESPN.

According to ESPN, a pair of communities in Southern California likewise banned “Astros” from their leagues. That is an area of the country where the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal stings most because the Los Angeles Dodgers lost the 2017 World Series to Houston.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred granted immunity to players involved in the scheme that employed a monitor with a feed from a center-field camera. Players in the dugout relayed signs by banging on trash cans.

It was 19 years ago the Little League World Series was marred by a cheating scandal when Danny Almonte, the star of a New York City-based team, was found to be two years too old to compete in Little League.

That helped contributed to the “I won’t cheat” patches. But will the erasing of the “Astros” name follow?

“As the (district administrator), I would not stop or prevent (member leagues/teams) from doing so,” said Joe Walkovich, who presides over District 7 in the Kittanning/Indiana corridor. “But I will bring that up in the next district meeting because I kind of like that idea.”

“The league got in deeper than it really wanted to.” -@MarkMaddenX on the Astros’ cheating scandal

[From today’s Madden and Benz Unfiltered] pic.twitter.com/Olp5Dtn7Wc

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The issue is moot to the many leagues that don’t use MLB team names. Many use sponsors.

Like Walkovich, district administrator Doug Talmadge said his District 26 (New Kensington/Latrobe area) has not had a meeting since the Astros scandal broke. He said some of his leagues use MLB team names, and it’s likely some teams are called the “Astros.”

“There’s a punishment now if you get caught stealing signals in Little League,” Talmadge said. “But nobody has come to me and said they didn’t want to use ‘Astros’ or asked me if they could.”