Despite recent MLB betting scandals, commissioner Rob Manfred does not envision federal intervention surrounding legal sports wagering.
Recent MLB betting scandals, like those in the other major North American professional sports leagues, have prompted increasing concerns surrounding integrity.
“It’s important to say that our No. 1 issue, the single thing on which there is no compromise, is the integrity of the game on the field. We went to the Supreme Court trying to stop sports betting in New Jersey. Once you had the Supreme Court decision, I don’t see it going backwards in any way. I really don’t,” Manfred told the Dallas Morning News last week.
“I think there is a lot of emphasis on states’ rights right now and the idea the federal government would step in and deprive states of an important source of revenue, I just politically don’t see that happening.”
Baseball rule prohibiting MLB betting
Rule 21 prohibits MLB players, umpires, and club or league officials and employees, from betting on baseball.
Bans can range from one year (wagering on baseball games in which they are not involved) to permanent ineligibility (wagering on baseball games in which they are involved) depending on the severity of the infraction.
However, the sport has dealt with multiple infractions of late.
Ohtani’s ex-interpreter pleads guilty
Shohei Ohtani’s ex-interpreter pleaded guilty to federal charges in May of stealing $17 million from the MLB star’s bank account.
Ippei Mizuhara did so in order to pay off sports betting debts owed to an illegal bookmaking operation.
Mizuhara faces up to 33 years in federal prison.
Marcano gets lifetime MLB betting ban
San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano received a lifetime ban in June for violating MLB betting policy.
Marcano wagered more than $150,000 on baseball.
Four other players received one-year suspicions for unrelated violations regarding MLB betting.
Umpire disciplined for policy violation
Umpire Pat Hoberg was disciplined in June for violating MLB betting policy, though he is appealing.
A league probe found that Hoberg did not compromise or manipulate any games he worked.
Details surrounding what Hoberg did remain unclear.
Manfred: Legal system gets bad actors
Manfred explained how a legal sports betting framework enables bad actors to be caught.
“But on the integrity front, we evaluate at the end of each year what programs we had in place and what we can do to make those programs even better. In the era when all sports betting was illegal, it was impossible to monitor. Right now, because most sports betting is legal, we have extensive monitoring in place.
“And, in fact, those monitoring systems resulted in [resolving] all of the incidents we’ve had this year. Our ability to monitor is one of the positives that comes with legalization. In the old days you didn’t have gambling scandals. It didn’t mean they didn’t have gambling. You just didn’t know about it,” Manfred said.
MLB betting scandals are nothing new
Manfred, though, has repeatedly denied Pete Rose’s request to be reinstated. Rose was banned for betting on baseball games, including on his own team, when he managed the Cincinnati Reds.
The sport also dealt with a high-profile, match-fixing scheme, known as the the “Black Sox Scandal” involving several members of the Chicago White Sox during the 1919 World Series.
Eight players, most notably “Shoeless Joe” Jackson, received permanent bans as a result.
