LOS ANGELES, CA — The total hypocrisy of Major League Baseball investigating players for suspicion of gambling while they (MLB) are deep into promoting betting at every game is mind-blowing. The latest player to be affected by MLB’s head-spinning, two-faced policies is Cleveland’s Emmanuel Clase, from Rio San Juan, Dominican Republic. The 27-year-old right-hander, a two-time AL LatinoMVP Reliever/Closer of the Year Award winner, has been placed on non-disciplinary paid leave through August 31, while MLB continues its investigation into sports betting.
Even though his case is said to involve him possibly part of fixing games, there is still an issue we need to look at.
A gambling investigation has sidelined one of the top relievers in the game Emmanuel Clase – Image Credit: Simon Lindenblatt/Latino Sports
In 2018, Major League Baseball partnered with MGM Resorts International, who became its first official gaming partner. In 2019, FanDuel was named an Authorized Gaming Operator of MLB. And then, DraftKings became an official sports betting partner in 2021. So while the billionaire owners get rich off of these gambling sites, hyping fans to bet in the stadiums, they frown on players betting. Do you think that between innings, fans are not betting on which color truck will win the animated race on the scoreboard through the streets of LA or trains of NY?
A nice thing to teach your kids when you take them to an overpriced day at the ballpark.
While MLB has made billions in partnerships with gambling companies, what will be the long term impact on the younger generation interested in playing and/or watching baseball? – Image Credit: German DuBois III/Latino Sports
Baseball will always be our “National Pastime,” and fans will always be entertained and thrilled by the amazing players who come and go in this sport. It’s a shame that we have to read about this ugly part of the game, but that’s true about many things in life.
The suspensions and the loss of key players hurt organizations on the field. In some cases, players are banished and gone forever. Reputations will be lost, but the owners will still be raking in millions and millions from you and these gambling companies. I absolutely believe that for the integrity of the game, players should not be allowed to bet on baseball. Still, I also have always believed that MLB should be held accountable for promoting something it has been against from its beginning.
My BET is that nothing will change.
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Julio
July 30, 2025 at 9:18 am
Very good article depicting a contradiction in baseball that would require some tweaking.
Julio Pabon
July 30, 2025 at 9:44 am
Very good and important article highlighting one of the contradictions that we sometimes see in a major sport, or industry and that few want to speak of publicly.