Martin not angered by Jays' sign stealing

TORONTO -- Their swings were just too perfect.

It took four innings, but eventually, Russell Martin said he realized the Toronto Blue Jays were stealing signs from second base during Thursday night's 16-7 thrashing of the Yankees.

"They were on everything," the catcher said before Friday night's game. "And with Bartolo out there and how good his fastball is and his sinker, I felt like something had to be going on."

Colon gave up eight runs (three earned) in just two-thirds of an inning for the Yankees, who allowed a season-high 20 hits.

Martin said he wasn't angered by the strategy: "I'm not blaming them for doing it, I'm blaming myself for letting them get the sign."

The catcher said the sign-stealing became more obvious in the fourth inning when, during Aaron Hill's at-bat, he saw the runner at second base turn his head to the right on a fastball sign and then left on an off-speed sign. Martin then jogged to the mound to talk to Hector Noesi and changed the signs.

"The next pitch breaking ball, swing and miss," Martin said, referring to Hill's strikeout on an 80-mph curve.

Martin joked, "If you ain't cheating, you ain't trying."

Martin said he did not suspect the Jays of stealing signs Friday night, but the Yankees took the precaution of using multiple signs from the beginning of the game. "It was the first time we've done that, so it slowed down the game a little bit," Martin said. "It's not an excuse. Sometimes you just have to tip your cap to the other team for doing the right things."

Like Martin, Joe Girardi said the Blue Jays have a reputation for stealing signs, but the manager said: "To me, it's not cheating because you're studying something, you're looking for signs. There's not a rule. I think if it's coming from the bullpen or someone's binoculars or it comes from the stands, that's out of bounds. But if it's the players and the competitiveness of the players, that's in bounds to me."

There are a myriad sign-stealing giveaways, but some teams are better at it than others.

"The good teams, you'll never know when they're relaying," Martin said. "There's so many things you can do on second base that I'd never be able to pick it up. But there [in the fourth inning], it was just so obvious that I noticed it."

Though he's seen pitchers intentionally drill batters as retribution, Martin denounced the practice.

"That's the wrong way. It really is," he said. "If you don't like it, make your signs more complicated . . . They're lucky that that's my mind-set."