Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Merrill Kelly had some sharp words for the Chicago Cubs after their MLB game, accusing third base coach Quintin Berry of crossing an unwritten baseball boundary by helping steal signs.
Kelly started for Arizona in the Diamondbacks’ 7-0 home loss and worked 5.2 innings, but one moment during the fifth inning turned an otherwise lopsided game into a heated confrontation.
While pitching to Michael Busch, Kelly stepped off the mound and stared toward Berry at third base. Kelly later explained that he believed Berry had picked up something that revealed when the pitcher was throwing his changeup and was passing that information along to Chicago’s left-handed hitters.
Diamondbacks Dugout Erupts Over Cubs Coach
Sign stealing itself has long been part of baseball. Players can pick up signs or tendencies without using prohibited technology. For Kelly, however, the problem was not simply that Chicago might have figured something out. It was where the information was allegedly coming from.
The situation quickly drew Arizona’s coaching staff into the dispute.
Pitching coach Brian Kaplan could be seen yelling at home plate umpire Lance Barrett and gesturing toward Berry, according to the local broadcast. Bench coach Brian Banister also became involved, wagging his finger and shouting toward the Cubs bench.
Berry responded with a smile as he turned toward Arizona’s dugout. Cubs bench coach Ryan Flaherty then appeared to answer the Diamondbacks with some heated words of his own.
After the game, Kelly made clear why the episode bothered him.
“Stealing signs is as old as baseball. I think it’s a little bull**** when it comes from a coach,” Kelly said.
Kelly Draws a Line Between MLB Players and Coaches
Kelly distinguished between opposing players recognizing a pitcher’s tendencies and coaches outside the field of play becoming directly involved.
“If it’s a guy on second base and they see a grip in your glove or if the hitters can see something you’re doing with your glove, I think that’s fair game,” Kelly said. “I think guys have been doing that since the beginning of baseball.”
But Kelly said the situation changes when the information comes from outside the lines.
“I think it’s a little bush league when it comes from outside that,” he said. “I think inside the lines is one thing; I think the guys that are standing outside the lines, I think it’s a little bush league.”
Kelly went even further, describing what he witnessed as particularly blatant.
“That was probably the most egregious I’ve seen from coaches,” he said.
He acknowledged that teams routinely search for any legitimate advantage they can find and said coaches relaying signs was nothing new. His objection was specifically about who should be involved in that part of the game.
“Everyone in this game is trying to get an edge wherever they can,” Kelly said. “Definitely not the first time a coach has relayed signs, but I think in that situation it should stay between the players.”
Craig Counsell Calls It Everyday ‘Gamesmanship’
Cubs manager Craig Counsell viewed the incident differently, describing it as the sort of “gamesmanship that goes on every day in the league.”
Whatever the interpretation, Chicago got the result that mattered on the scoreboard. The Cubs walked away with a 7-0 victory while leading the National League Wild Card race, and what might otherwise have been remembered simply as a decisive win instead came with a very public argument over one of baseball’s oldest practices, and where players believe the line should be drawn.
