A brief history of betting in baseball and how SCOTUS ruling affects MLB

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LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 15: Jake Sindberg of Wisconsin makes bets during a viewing party for the NCAA Men’s College Basketball Tournament inside the 25,000-square-foot Race & Sports SuperBook at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino which features 4,488-square-feet of HD video screens on March 15, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

Three things that are core to the game of baseball and the way that we experience it have all been banned at one point in time: Sunday games, alcohol and gambling.

A combination of states fighting blue laws and Sunday games being used to benefit war efforts legalized games on the day after being illegal for most of the 20th century.

In the late 19th century, teams found to be selling beer or whiskey would be expelled from the National League and it wasn’t until the American Association undercut the NL — becoming what the ABA is to the NBA — that the NL started selling alcohol.

In 1865 and then again in 1877, gambling almost destroyed baseball. The first instance saw the New York Mutuals’ catcher, third baseman and shortstop banned from baseball for accepting $100 a piece to throw a game. The second instance — this time in the NL — the Louisville Grays mysteriously lost seven games in a row. An investigation revealed that gamblers had bought off four players which would be banned from baseball for life. The quartet claimed they threw the games because their owner had failed to meet payroll obligations and begged for forgiveness.

Sound familiar?

Yeah, that exact situation robbed the 1919 World Series of its legitimacy.

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Of course there is Pete Rose, Leo Durocher and many others, the point being gambling is at the heart of baseball and it always has been. Since the Black Sox scandal, hanging in every MLB clubhouse or dugout is a sign that reads rule 21, “Any player, umpire, or club or league official or employee, who shall bet any sum whatsoever upon any baseball game in connection with which
the bettor has a duty to perform shall be declared permanently ineligible.”

You see, baseball has long swung back and forth between a gentleman’s game and one barbaric to some. From calling fans royal rooters to rewarding players for reaching third base with a brew, baseball has long been a paradox of the class system.

Today, MLB may have had its greatest taboo — in their eyes — destigmatized. The Supreme Court of the United States of America ruled 6-3 in favor of the state of New Jersey in a landmark decision which nationally legalized sports gambling.

HOUSTON, TX – OCTOBER 28: Major League Baseball Commissioner Robert D. Manfred Jr. speaks to the media during a press conference prior to game four of the 2017 World Series between the Houston Astros and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Minute Maid Park on October 28, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Technically speaking, this Sunday you could legally gamble on a Sunday baseball game you’re at while drinking a beer.

Many already bet on baseball in the dark or head to Nevada to get in on the action … but now it will be brought into the light with the possibility of doing it from home or dare I say, even at the ballpark.

Make no mistake this is a loss for MLB, at least on the front end. They’ve been fighting the legalization of sports gambling for as long as one can remember. Though, today’s statement released by the league didn’t completely close the door on how they feel:

“Today’s decision by the United States Supreme Court will have profound effects on Major League Baseball. As each state considers whether to allow sports betting, we will continue to seek the proper protections for our sport, in partnership with other professional sports. Our most important priority is protecting the integrity of our games. We will continue to support legislation that creates air-tight coordination and partnerships between the state, the casino operators and the governing bodies in sports toward that goal.”

Both MLB and MLBPA, who released the statement below feel the same way:

“The Court’s decision is monumental, with far-reaching implications for baseball players and the game we love. From complex intellectual property questions to the most basic issues of player safety, the realities of widespread sports betting must be addressed urgently and thoughtfully to avoid putting our sport’s integrity at risk as states proceed with legalization.”

All of those big words … all it means is the clubs, owners, league and players want a cut. If they’re going to be gambled upon they want to see some of that money too.

That might be opening Pandora’s box in itself and is unlikely to happen given there is now no reason for casinos to cut MLB in.

The four major sports unions in a join statement also took a similar tone:

“Our unions have been discussing the potential impact of legalized gambling on players’ privacy and publicity rights, the integrity of our games and the volatility on our businesses. Betting on sports may become widely legal, but we cannot allow those who have lobbied the hardest for sports gambling to be the only ones controlling how it would be ushered into our businesses. The athletes must also have a seat at the table to ensure that players’ rights and the integrity of our games are protected.”

Three things that are core to the game of baseball and the way that we experience it have all been banned at one point in time: Sunday games, alcohol and gambling.

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