Angels Scout Justin Prinstin, Formerly with KBO, Fired for Secretly Filming Opposing Coach

Filming of Colorado Coaches Raises Sign-Stealing Suspicion
Angels Immediately Dismiss Prinstin Over Incident
Former Scout for Kia Tigers and LG Twins in Korea

Justin Prinstin, a scout for the Los Angeles Angels in Major League Baseball (MLB), was caught secretly filming an opposing coach and has been fired as a result.

According to the U.S. sports outlet The Athletic on July 23 (Korean time), Prinstin was dismissed after he was caught filming the Colorado Rockies' coaches from the stands on his mobile phone. He previously worked as a foreign scout for South Korea's Kia Tigers and LG Twins professional baseball teams. The Athletic reported that Prinstin referred to himself as "The Baseball Spy" on social media and other platforms.

Justin Prentice, a scout for the Los Angeles Angels, was fired for taking photos of the coaching staff of the Colorado Rockies with his mobile phone. Photo by The Athletic

Last month, during a game against Colorado, Prinstin was spotted by a Colorado staff member while filming the Rockies' coaching staff with his mobile phone from a designated scouting seat. While MLB permits scouts to record videos, using electronic devices to steal or decode signs is strictly prohibited. At the time, the Rockies were relaying pitch signals from the dugout to the pitcher through a coach.

The Colorado organization immediately reported the incident to the MLB office. After being notified, the Angels terminated Prinstin's employment and issued an apology to the Colorado management. Both teams concluded that this incident was an isolated act by Prinstin alone.

After news coverage began, Prinstin switched his X (formerly Twitter) account to private and has been avoiding contact from the media. On a previous podcast he hosted, he had strongly criticized the Houston Astros' 2019 sign-stealing scandal, stating, "Stealing signs using technology is crossing the line; it is nothing less than an act of spying."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.