Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch, left, talks with bench coach George Lombard, front, during a spring training game against the Philadelphia Phillies in Clearwater, Fla., on March 21. (AP file photo)

Hinch was suspended by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred for a year in January 2020 and subsequently fired by owner Jim Crane for his role in the scheme that violated rules by using a video camera to steal catchers’ signs during Houston’s run to the 2017 World Series title and again in the 2018 season.

He was hired by the Tigers this off-season and discussed the scandal prior to the opener of a three-game series vs. the Astros.

Asked whether he still takes pride in leading the Astros to their first title in a season tainted by cheating, he gave a long and frank answer acknowledging the team’s wrongdoing.

“I do believe that we did some good things in Houston,” Hinch said. “I do believe we were wrong in the behavior and the decisions that we made in 2017, and it’s hard to have that cloud over the sport and be responsible for that and be the man that was that was the manager that it happened on my watch.”

Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch adjusts his mask as he stands on the dugout steps during the team's spring training game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Bradenton, Fla., on March 2. (AP file photo)

Hinch spent five seasons in Houston, helping turn around a team that had sunk to embarrassing lows during a rebuild in the years before he arrived. The Astros won more than 100 games in each of his last three seasons.