Sign stealing—one of baseball’s oldest gray areas—turned into a full-blown scandal in recent years. While done through observation and wit, it’s long been considered part of the game’s gamesmanship. However, the gamesmanship sometimes creates a situation of bench-clearing on the field. Something that happened in the game between the Blue Jays and Mariners on Saturday.

Tensions boiled over Saturday night in Seattle, as the Blue Jays and Mariners found themselves in the middle of a fiery confrontation that emptied both benches.

At the center of it all: the Blue Jays starter Jose Berrios and Mariners slugger Cal Raleigh.

It started with suspicion. Berrios believed Raleigh, while standing on base, was tipping pitches to his teammates—an accusation that cuts deep in a game where secrecy and strategy live pitch-to-pitch. As the inning came to a close, the two crossed paths near the dugout. Words were exchanged, and Berrios didn’t hold back. Cameras caught the right-hander clearly saying his piece, his body language leaving little doubt about the seriousness of the accusation.

Now, the issue got further amplified when the famous MLB analyst Jomboy made a breakdown video on the same. According to Jomboy, it looked like Raleigh was relaying something from second base, possibly tipping off his teammates about pitch types or locations. In the video, he highlights subtle movements—glances, body language, and timing—that suggest Raleigh might have been flashing signals to the dugout or batter. Well, no trash cans, no buzzers, just old-school communication in a very modern spotlight.

While no punches were thrown on the field, the message was clear: even the slightest whiff of sign stealing—perceived or real—can turn a tight ballgame into a fight club. And in a league still feeling the aftershocks of past scandals, those accusations carry weight.

However, is it illegal to relay signs? Here’s the thing. Whether or not Cal Raleigh was relaying signs, it almost doesn’t matter. Because in the rulebook—and baseball’s unwritten code—stealing signs from the field of play is perfectly legal.

There’s no foul in a base runner decoding a sequence, picking up a tell, or flashing a subtle cue to the hitter. That’s baseball. It’s gamesmanship, not cheating. So yes, Raleigh knows the mind game behind the plate better than most. He’s not just catching pitches—he’s setting traps, decoding hitters, and managing a game within the game.

Raleigh fell short of leveraging sign-stealing 

Was Raleigh really stealing signs? If yes, then it didn’t exactly pay off. Why?

With the supposed intel in hand, Rowdy Tellez struck out. Dylan Moore followed by popping out. Whatever advantage may have been passed along got swallowed up by execution, or the lack thereof. That’s the other side of the mind game: you can know what’s coming, but you still have to hit it. So, whether it was a savvy catcher playing chess or just an overblown misunderstanding, the moment fizzled into outs. Berrios got his pitches off. Raleigh got his trip around the bases. And the scoreboard, indifferent to drama, moved on. Hence, it still seems unlikely that Raleigh was actually involved in stealing signs.

Well, leaving these controversies aside, Raleigh is set to make it big this season.

This season, Raleigh has put together a campaign that borders on legendary—a rare blend of offensive thunder and defensive command from one of the game’s most demanding positions. On the offensive side, Raleigh didn’t just produce—he rewrote the record books. With 100 RBIs and 34 home runs, he set new franchise marks, but he didn’t stop there. He etched his name into MLB history, launching 93 home runs across his first four seasons—the most ever by a catcher in that span.

Hence, Cal Raleigh is standing firmly in the spotlight, and deservedly so. Do you think this will lead to an MVP campaign for Raleigh?