It’s time for the main participants in the main professional sports to take a stand that might permanently end the gambling problem. Paradoxically, Pete Rose would be part of the solution, but everyone would also need to receive higher compensation for winning games. The concept is presented at the same time that Major League Baseball has punished or barred a number of players for baseball wagering, including Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Andrew Saalfrank.
On Tuesday, Arizona manager Torey Lovullo remarked, “He made a bad decision.” “We must safeguard the fairness of this game.” Saalfrank, pitcher Michael Kelly of Oakland, pitcher Jay Groome of San Diego, and infielder Jose Rodriguez of Philadelphia were all given one-year suspensions for their involvement in baseball wagering. Meanwhile, Tucupita Marcano, an infielder for San Diego, received a lifetime ban.
These are only the most recent instances in a controversy involving Shohei Ohtani, the biggest player in the sport, whose interpreter entered a guilty plea for taking money from the two-time MVP in order to cover enormous debts from gambling. Players who gambled at team facilities received suspensions from the NFL. A player who placed bets on games he participated in has also been suspended by the NBA.
The acts are precisely what fans and observers anticipated would happen when sports betting expanded outside of Las Vegas after a 2018 Supreme Court ruling that effectively launched a multibillion dollar business. However, what if leagues were reorganized to make winning more rewarding? Initially, what would happen if a player could wager on his team’s victory at any time, anywhere? What could possibly go wrong?
What if, after that, leagues began to give winning organizations additional money? And not just to the athletes, but also to the front-desk workers, managers, coaches, and staff? Assume that everyone receives their regular pay, but that there are bonuses for finishing the regular season with a winning percentage of.600,.700, and so forth. These bonuses might be funded by money made by gambling businesses.
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