The Yankees thought Doug Fister’s mouthguard was a secret listening device

The Red Sox cheated by stealing signs and relaying said signs through Apple Watches. There is no avoiding that truth: Boston even admitted this is something they were doing. However, the Sox also feel like the Yankees are just kind of picking on them.

Considering that everyone in the league is stealing signs through the use of the the replay feed in dugouts, and the Apple Watch, if anything, was an unnecessary level of complication that served to get the Red Sox in trouble ... well, Boston doesn’t really have a point about being picked on, because again, they’re in the wrong here for, if nothing else, leaving a (digital) paper trail.

On the other hand, given Evan Drellich is reporting that New York complained to MLB about a supposed audio device Red Sox starter Doug Fister was wearing on his ear in the dugout in his most recent start against the Yankees ... maybe they do have a point.

That’s because it was a mouthguard. Doug Fister had his mouthguard on his ear.

As Drellich points out, that could be some kind of hearing aid, sure. It’s also not in his ear, just on his ear, and Fister never wore it on the mound. You know, because it was in his mouth. Guarding his mouth, as mouthguards do.

Two things can be true here. The Red Sox stole signs and relayed them in a way that the other 29 teams do not find acceptable. (Well, 29 minus whichever other teams have maybe used an Apple Watch to do the same thing and now will quietly stop doing so after the Sox got busted.) The Yankees also maybe need to lighten up on the conspiracy theories, especially since it could turn out that Boston’s counter-complaint about how the Yankees steal signs is under investigation could make the Yankees playing the role of snitch a real bad look soon.

And even if Boston’s counter-complaint is incorrect ... it was a mouthguard, guys.

The end result of all of this is going to be fans of both teams hating each other more and fans of everyone else despising both of these clubs more than they already do. Which is pretty good, actually. Keep complaining, Yankees, and keep coming up with deflections and excuses, Red Sox.