San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano has been permanently banned from Major League Baseball after violating the league's gambling policy, league officials announced, and commissioner Rob Manfred made the league's standing on the issue clear.
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Four others were suspended for similar infractions: Oakland A's reliever Michael Kelly and minor-league players Jay Groome (Padres pitcher), Jose Rodriguez (Philadelphia Phillies infielder) and Andrew Saalfrank (Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher).
"The strict enforcement of Major League Baseball's rules and policies governing gambling conduct is a critical component of upholding our most important priority: protecting the integrity of our games for the fans," Manfred said in a statement. "The longstanding prohibition against betting on Major League Baseball games by those in the sport has been a bedrock principle for over a century.
"We have been clear that the privilege of playing in baseball comes with a responsibility to refrain from engaging in certain types of behavior that are legal for other people. Since the Supreme Court decision opened the door to legalized sports betting, we have worked with licensed sports betting operators and other third parties to put ourselves in a better position from an integrity perspective through the transparency that a regulated sports betting system can provide. MLB will continue to invest heavily in integrity monitoring, educational programming and awareness initiatives with the goal of ensuring strict adherence to this fundamental rule of our game."
This news follows the lifetime ban of Jontay Porter, formerly of the Toronto Raptors, for betting on NBA games. That came during this past NBA regular season.
Marcano allegedly bet on games last season while injured as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
