Cardinals to give Astros 2 draft picks, pay $2M fine for hacking scandal
The discipline is finally in for the St. Louis Cardinals after former scouting director Chris Correa hacked the databases of the Houston Astros in 2013.
The Cardinals must award their top two draft picks (No. 56 and No. 75) in June's draft to the Astros, as well as pay a $2-million fine, according to multiple sources.
Houston immediately followed the ruling with a club statement.
The Houston Astros support MLB's ruling and award of penalties. This unprecedented award by the Commissioner's Office sends a clear message of the severity of these actions. Our staff has invested a great deal of time in support of the government, legal and league investigations and are pleased to have closure on this issue. We are looking forward to focusing our attention on the 2017 season and the game of baseball.
Although Correa admitted in court he told "colleagues" what he had done, MLB investigators in charge of the case claimed no employees besides Correa were responsible for the hacking scandal, reports USA Today's Bob Nightengale.
Correa pleaded guilty to five criminal charges in connection with unauthorized access to the Astros' computer database and was sentenced to nearly four years in prison in July 2016 after the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Justice Department began investigating the matter in February 2015. He was also ordered to pay the Astros $279,038.65 in restitution.
The investigation first took place after evidence was discovered of a possible security breach into the Astros' internal database, which housed trade discussions and scouting reports.
According to multiple documents obtained by MLB.com in 2016, Correa breached the Astros' systems on numerous occasions between March 2013 and June 2014. One breach included the download of an Excel spreadsheet document containing confidential scouting information related to the 2013 draft, as well as details about the non-waiver trade deadline.
Correa has also been placed on the permanently ineligible list - effective immediately - by commissioner Rob Manfred.