Yankees vs. Astros rivalry revisited: Taylor Trammell bat controversy latest chapter in one-sided matchup

Another chapter was added to the now decade old New York Yankees vs. Houston Astros rivalry on Thursday. The Yankees won the series finale at Daikin Park (NYY 8, HOU 4) and requested outfielder Taylor Trammell's bat be inspected following a ninth-inning double. The bat was confiscated by the umpire crew, though Trammell was not called out on the play or ejected.

Here is the entire sequence:

"It was just something that we noticed this series and asked the league about," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said about Trammell's bat after the game. "You're not allowed to do anything to your bat. I'm not saying he was. I just, we noticed and the league thought it maybe was illegal too."

MLB has reportedly determined Trammell's bat was in violation of Rule 3.02(c), which covers the coloring of the bat. The umpires and the league also determined the bat did not give Trammell an unfair advantage. Rule 3.02(c) gives the umpire crew the discretion to eject the player, though Trammell stayed in because it was only a coloring issue, not a performance issue.

The Trammell bat saga is merely a blip and perhaps a bit of gameship on the part of Boone and the Yankees. After all, Trammell played five games for the Yankees (and over 100 games for their Triple-A affiliate) last year, so they presumably had some insight into his equipment. That may have contributed to the decision to have his bat checked.

Regardless, this is the latest entry in the Yankees vs. Astros rivalry, which goes back to 2015. Here's a recap of their history.

Postseason meetings

The Yankees vs. Astros rivalry is about as one-sided as a rivalry can be. The Yankees have fared quite well against the Astros during the regular season, including winning nine times in their last 10 games in Houston, though the Yankees will never be defined by their regular-season success, and the Astros eliminated them from the postseason four times from 2015-22.

Here's is their head-to-head postseason history:

• 2015 AL Wild Card Game: Astros won 3-0
• 2017 ALCS: Astros won 4-3
• 2019 ALCS: Astros won 4-2
• 2022 ALCS: Astros swept 4-0

The signature moment of the Yankees vs. Astros rivalry is Jose Altuve's pennant-clinching walk-off home run against Aroldis Chapman in Game 6 of the 2019 ALCS. That came a half-inning after DJ LeMahieu hit a game-tying two-run home run to give the Yankees hope and keep their season alive.

The Yankees had a 3-2 series lead in the 2017 ALCS going back to Houston, then lost Games 6 and 7 as the Astros punched their ticket to the World Series. The Astros won both the 2017 and 2022 World Series after eliminating the Yankees.

The Yankees were outspoken about the sign-stealing scandal

In November 2019, former Astros pitcher Mike Fiers blew the whistle on an elaborate sign-stealing scandal employed by the Astros during their 2017 World Series season, and in subsequent years. MLB investigated and determined the Astros used improper electronic equipment to steal signs. In January 2020, Astros manager A.J. Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow were both suspended one year, and the team was docked draft picks and fined. No players were disciplined.

Players and personnel for the Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers, who lost to the Astros in the 2017 World Series, were the most outspoken once the sign-stealing scandal became public.

"I just don't think (the 2017 World Series title) holds any value with me. You cheated and you didn't earn it," Yankees captain Aaron Judge said in February 2020. "It wasn't earned the way of playing the game right and fighting to the end. The biggest thing about competition is laying it all out on the line, and whoever's the better player, better person, comes out on top. And to know that another team had an advantage -- nothing that you can really guard against -- I just don't feel like that's earned."

"It's weird, like it changes all the time," former Yankees ace CC Sabathia told ESPN at the time. "When I first heard it, I was upset, and then as investigations went on, I was like well, we can't go back and play the games. But as more information started to come out, I'm like we played a seven-game series in 2017, ALCS, and we lost really on kind of like one pitch. As everything's been coming out and the more facts that we get, it's getting frustrating, man, to sit here and know that late in my career I could've had a title."  

Yankees GM Brian Cashman brought up the sign-stealing scandal last October, after the Yankees won the ALCS and clinched their first American League pennant in 15 years.

"It means a lot," Cashman said during an MLB Network appearance. "I hate the 15-year (drought) thing because it completely forgets and discounts that some other organization cheated us when we were all the way in the end. If you knew what was going on, then I don't think they would be advancing during that time. I think we would have been advancing. So, I hate that 15-year thing because I don't think it accurately reflects history but regardless, we're proud to be where we are now."

Trammell's bat controversy

Ultimately, Trammell's bat controversy, if you can even call it a "controversy," is about as minor as these things get. A player used an improperly colored piece of equipment, the piece of equipment was removed from play, and the game continued. It is unlikely Trammell will face additional discipline now that the league reportedly determined the bat did not give him an unfair advantage.

Still, it is another chapter in the Yankees vs. Astros rivalry. A rivalry that has featured the Astros eliminating the Yankees from the postseason four times in an eight-year span, and the Yankees being very outspoken about Houston's sign-stealing scandal. The two teams will not meet again this regular season, though there is a chance they could run into each other once more in October.