Dodgers: Perception of the 2017 World Series altered by sign stealing

Clayton Kershaw and Yu Darvish get viewed much differently

Yu Darvish made a video yesterday which was translated by the LA Times and Darvish shared how he feels conflicted over the latest claims made against the Astros.  Dodger fans may also feel conflicted in how they view Yu Darvish.  Darvish was made out to be one of the biggest villains in Dodgers’ history for sabotaging the Dodgers’ chances of a World Series title.

While Yu did still lose game seven at home, his game three start in which he allowed six hits and four earned runs in 1 2/3 innings gets a whole new story.  Rather than Darvish tipping, the Astros hitters were being tipped off on whether changeups were coming or not.  While the Astros’ cheating can not be to blame for all of Darvish’s struggles, it likely contributed to his game three struggles.

Then there is Clayton Kershaw and his meltdown in game five.  Kershaw gave up six runs in four-plus innings and blew 4-0 and 7-4 leads with an assist from Kenta Maeda who allowed Jose Altuve to tie the game on a home run.  While Kershaw still has a bad playoff history, arguably the worst playoff meltdown of his career appears to have been aided by illegal means.

Yu Darvish (the most) and Clayton Kershaw wore much of the blame for the Dodgers’ 2017 World Series loss but now the perception of their meltdowns is changed forever.  The question will forever remain how much did the Astros’ cheating help defeat Darvish and Kershaw at Minute Maid Park?