Prominent U.S. sportsbooks are establishing a nationwide $200 betting limit on baseball wagers centered on individual pitches and prohibiting such bets from being included in parlays in an attempt to decrease the incentive for manipulation, Major League Baseball announced Monday.
MLB has been in discussions with its authorized sportsbook partners about potential changes to betting menus and limits since the summer, after unusual wagering was detected on individual pitches by Cleveland Guardians starter Luis Ortiz in a pair of June games.
On Sunday, federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment that charged Ortiz and Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase for their alleged roles in a gambling scheme centered on whether individual pitches would be balls or strikes as well as the over/under on the velocity of some pitches. According to the indictment, gamblers won approximately $450,000 on proposition bets on individual pitches during the alleged scheme.
MLB believes reducing the amount bettors can win on such markets will disincentivize attempts at manipulation. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said baseball has worked with the sportsbook industry over the past seven years to “uphold our most important priority: protecting the integrity of our games for the fans.”
“I commend the industry for working with us to take action on a national solution to address the risks posed by these pitch-level markets, which are particularly vulnerable to integrity concerns,” Manfred said, adding that he had received guidance on the issue from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine.
DeWine called for a ban on such micro-prop bets after MLB launched its investigation in July into the suspicious betting activity on Ortiz and Clase.
“By limiting the ability to place large wagers on micro-prop bets, Major League Baseball is taking affirmative steps to protect the integrity of the game and reduce the incentives to participate in improper betting schemes,” DeWine said in the release. “I urge other sports leagues to follow Major League Baseball’s example with similar action.”
DraftKings and FanDuel, the two largest sportsbook operators, said they have agreed to adjust their baseball betting menus to abide by MLB’s requests and believe the legal market’s ability to detect bad actors will act as a deterrent to combat future issues.
“In collaboration with Major League Baseball, we have adjusted certain bet types to further deter bad actors while helping maintain fairness and trust in the game,” a DraftKings spokesperson told ESPN.
FanDuel president Christian Genetski said the legal betting industry will continue to collaborate with sports leagues and take steps to combat corruption.
“This initiative illustrates our unwavering commitment to building a legal and regulated market that roots out abuses by those who seek to undermine fair competition and damage the integrity of the games we love,” Genetski said.