2017 Astros reserve outfielder Cameron Maybin joined the Yankees as a free agent in 2019 and reportedly tipped off Yankees about the Astros' sign-stealing before 2019 AL Championship Series match-up between the two teams. Nevertheless, the Astros proceeded to win their third playoff series versus the Yankees when they beat them again in the ALCS in six games. In the series, Jose Altuve became just the fifth player to hit a walk-off pennant-winning homer in the LCS-era (1969–present), which sealed the dubious distinction of the 2010s being the first decade of the Yankees not making a World Series appearance in a century. In 2021, the Astros won the pennant again after reaching the ALCS for the fifth straight year, becoming just the third team to ever reach the LCS five times in a row. Coincidentally, they beat the Boston Red Sox, managed by Cora. The following season, Houston beat New York again in the 2022 AL Championship Series, via a four-game sweep.
