Mark Madden's Hot Take: 'Cheaters never win' doesn't apply for MLB

You can cheat in baseball and get away with it. Not just stretch the rules or exploit gray areas. But blatantly cheat, win, and not get punished.

The biggest example is the Houston Astros. They won a World Series in 2017 via sign-stealing. They got caught and confessed. Not one player got suspended. They kept their rings.

The latest example occurred Thursday, when the New York Mets hosted Miami. The score was tied 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth. The bases were loaded.

With one out and a count of 1-2, Mets batter Michael Conforto stuck his elbow into the strike zone. The pitch was a strike, but it grazed his elbow. HBP. Game over. The ump blew it. Replay doesn’t apply.

The Mets celebrated like they won the Little League World Series. The full walk-off celebration. They weren’t even remotely sheepish.

It was absolutely farcical.

Two things should happen:

• The next time Conforto bats against Miami, he should get drilled. Perhaps more than once. The teams were scheduled to play again Saturday.

You want to get hit? Let’s do this right. Conforto’s elbow was heavily padded. He took no risk. Find a more sensitive spot, like his ribs. A few other Mets should hit the deck, too. Let them celebrate that.

• MLB should overturn the Mets’ victory and replay the game. Conforto cheated, and it led directly to the Mets winning. They shouldn’t get away with it.

But they did. The Astros did. Cheating is perpetuated when you get away with it.

Baseball’s past steroid users are a separate debate. MLB didn’t implement steroid testing till 2003. Known users aren’t making baseball’s Hall of Fame, so you can’t say they got away with it. Their statistics are forever tainted. But they kept the money they made.