“Baseball is pretty much in bed with gambling now," - Pete Rose finds Charlie Blackmon's sportsbook endorsement ironic, believes he played in the wrong era
Pete Rose, the all-time leader for hits in the MLB, is not too happy with the changing landscape of gambling in baseball. Pete Rose was given a lifetime suspension in 1989 when it was discovered he had been placing bets on the outcome of games while being the manager of the Cincinnati Reds.
Now in 2022, sports gambling is becoming much more prevalent in North American sports, including baseball. Charlie Blackmon, an All-Star outfielder for the Colorado Rockies, recently became the first active MLB player to endorse a sportsbook, where he will be used in promotional material and marketing.
In an interview with Bob Nightengale referenced in the below tweet, Pete Rose expressed his frustration for still being banned from the MLB while the league becomes more comfortable with gambling.
'I was 30 years too early': Pete Rose opens up about MLB's new gambling stance usatoday.com/story/sports/m…
"'I was 30 years too early': Pete Rose opens up about MLB's new gambling stance" - @ Bob Nightengale
While the MLB hits king's frustrations are warranted, don't expect things to change anytime soon.
Pete Rose is unlikely to ever make the Baseball Hall of Fame
The MLB is becoming more receptive to sports gambling, and it is becoming normalized in our society, but the league will never allow players, managers, or any league personnel to place bets while they are active in the league. The entire concept of sports gambling falls apart if the assumption that everybody involved in the sport itself is doing everything they can to win is tainted in any way. That costs both the league and the gambling companies money.
An example of this was recently seen in the NFL. Atlanta Falcons receiver Calvin Ridley was suspended indefinitely, with a minimum of one season out of play, for betting on games while away from his team. As issues crop up, it's very important for the league and the gambling companies to shut these things down quickly.
Emma Baccellieri understands this well, as she commented on the recent statements via Twitter.
Man, I know Pete Rose has been saying this and will keep saying it, but it just drives me up the wall — MLB’s new gambling stance has nothing that would allow a player or manager to bet on MLB! lots to critique before getting to “Pete Rose was 30 years early!” twitter.com/bnightengale/s…
"Man, I know Pete Rose has been saying this and will keep saying it, but it just drives me up the wall — MLB’s new gambling stance has nothing that would allow a player or manager to bet on MLB!" - @ Emma Baccellieri
The sports world continues to change. As sports gambling becomes more common in North America, the rules and punishments will have to be decisively implemented to avoid issues like those that affected the would-be Hall of Famer in 1989.