When with the on Thursday, in the fallout of the ' sign-stealing scandal, joining and ( ). Add in the levied against the Astros ( Colin Kaepernick Jersey a $5 million fine and forfeiture of four draft picks), the season-long suspension of former Houston general manager Jeff Luhnow, and the concerning almost everything Astros-related, and Major League Baseball has had a chaotic and unusually engaging mid-January week.The root of all this traces back to mid-November, when . Former Astros pitcher , now with the , was the only player with firsthand knowledge of the scheme who spoke on the record, cementing himself as the "whistleblower" in the story. Fiers has since faced criticism from all corners, including, most recently, Je sica Mendoza, .The brickbats thrown Fiers' way tend to be of the same composition: the implication that the Right Way to handle things would have been to go to Astros management; or, that he violated a code by speaking out against his ex-teammates. There's the idea, Elijah Mitchell Jersey too, that Fiers is a hypocrite who was OK with the cheating when he benefited (he has a World Series ring that is owed, to some unknowable degree, to the operation), but turned coat upon changing hats.In some there lurks more resentment for Fiers -- and for whistleblowers in general -- than for those who committed and maintained the unethical behavior without reservation or regret. The criticisms mi s that Fiers was (and is) risking what remains of his career -- baseball, as with other profe sional sports, is not above blackballing individuals -- and his privilege to then enjoy a quiet retirement. He's instead opened himself up to lifelong critique and debridement from strangers, including those who, in po se sion of a Houston area code, would have regarded him with the same warm fuzzies a sociated with most championship-squad members.Those di ses -- -- also mi s that people like Fiers, who are willing to trade comfort for justice, are nece sary for an honest society. It's easy to understand why others fell in line or stayed silent, . There are disincentives for coming forward, systemically and socially, for doing the just thing in the face of unethical behavior. Yet Reuben Foster Jersey it's almost always nece sary to enact real change. Had Fiers remained anonymous, the league may have ignored his comments instead of launching a probe following significant public pre sure, .Why did Fiers speak now, instead of years ago? It's not hard to understand. The forces and impulses compelling people to question his motives are the same that make it hard for individuals to come forward in the first place. Fiers had to overcome those, and he likely did so by listening to other forces and impulses -- call it his conscience, his better , whatever; those Deebo Samuel Hoodies Sweatshirts should be the ones touted and prioritized in the years to come. Why not go to the Astros' leadership first? Hinch, by his own admi sion, damaged a few monitors. The front office, meanwhile, was . Of course, it doesn't help that this an era where cro sing the ethical and moral lines are met with indifference -- or, arguably as frequently, justification.The have every right to wonder how the 2017 and 2018 World Series would have played out if the Astros and Red Sox were on the up and up, . The Dodgers shouldn't be singled out in that regard; . Even domestically, teams who suppre s their players' salaries are praised for their efficiency or excused for their conformity -- "everyone does it," or "it's not against the rules," are trotted out in defense as often as a left-handed specialist on a Tony La Ru sa-managed team.Fiers isn't perfect, but that isn't the standard. What he is, really, is someone who was tasked with navigating . He chose to speak up when his silence would have Joe Montana Hoodies Sweatshirts been accepted and more beneficial for his career and his livelihood. Fiers won't be knighted or sainted; he should be appreciated, however, for he restored part of baseball's integrity.