The Los Angeles Angels fired pro scout Justin “Boomer” Prinstein after he was seen recording Colorado Rockies coaches with a cell phone during a game this season, The Athletic revealed.
According to the report, Prinstein was discovered in the stands at Coors Field by a member of the Colorado organization while filming the Rockies coaching staff before a three-game series played June 1-3 in Los Angeles.
Although scouts are allowed to record videos for their evaluation work, Major League Baseball (MLB) prohibits the use of technology to steal or decipher signs of rival teams.
The Angels acted immediately
After detecting the situation, the Rockies notified MLB, which subsequently informed the Angels. According to The Athletic, then-general manager Perry Minasian immediately fired Prinstein and apologized to the Colorado front office.
The sources consulted by the media indicate that the Los Angeles franchise would not face disciplinary sanctions, since both the Angels and the Rockies consider that the scout acted on his own account and without authorization from the club.
Neither MLB, nor the two organizations involved, nor Prinstein himself commented on the case.
He would also have recorded the Fathers
The report adds that Prinstein was also seen filming the San Diego Padres dugout when the Angels visited that city in April. However, it is not clear whether the Padres or the Los Angeles organization itself were aware of that incident.
Prinstein, 42, had been hired by the Angels in December. He previously worked as an international scout for the Cincinnati Reds in 2023 and spent two seasons with teams in the KBO, South Korea’s professional league.
In addition, he was known on social networks for using the user @TheBaseballSpy (“The Baseball Spy”) on X and for having hosted a podcast with the same name.
