Source: Appeal of MLB Ump Hoberg’s Sports Betting Punishment Still Ongoing

Two years ago, Pat Hoberg received a perfect score when he worked behind the plate for Game 2 of the 2022 World Series.

But Hoberg, a longtime umpire, has not worked an MLB game since the league announced in June that it commenced an investigation regarding his potential violation of MLB’s sports betting policies. If Hoberg is eventually suspended, he will be the first U.S. professional umpire or referee to be formally punished for a sports wagering violation since the historic PASPA decision.

While Hoberg was removed from the field during the pendency of that investigation, MLB determined that discipline was warranted, the league wrote in a June statement. At the time, Hoberg opted to appeal MLB’s determination.

When asked by Action Network this week about the status of Hoberg’s appeal, an MLB spokesperson declined to comment. But per a source close to the situation, MLB has said that it cannot comment further until the appeal process is concluded.

The investigation, which commenced during Spring Training, did not find any evidence that games worked by Hoberg were compromised or manipulated in any way, the league wrote in the June statement. The World Series begins on Friday night when the Los Angeles Dodgers host the New York Yankees.

No Details on Potential Wagers in Question

Hoberg, a Des Moines, Iowa, native, first joined MLB in 2014, before he received a promotion as a full-time umpire three years later. By 2018, he received plaudits for his accuracy, according to a Boston University study on error rates among home plate umpires. For the 2018 regular season, Hoberg recorded an error rate of 7.93%, the study found, placing him in the Top 10 of MLB umpires behind the plate.

Hoberg also displayed a proficiency for accuracy in highly-pressure moments. During the second game of the 2022 World Series, he called 129 of 129 taken pitches correctly, according to UmpScorecards.com, a website that monitors umpire performance.

In the months following MLB’s announcement, few details have been uncovered on the potential wagers in question. But sources reportedly told ESPN that Hoberg denied betting on baseball.

“I have devoted my adult life to the profession of umpiring, and the integrity of baseball is of the utmost importance to me. I look forward to the appeal process, and I am grateful that the Major League Baseball Umpires Association (MLBUA) is supporting me in the appeal,” Hoberg told USA Today reporter Bob Nightengale in June.

At the time, Nightengale also received a statement on the investigation from the MLBUA. The association did not respond to emails or calls from Action Network this week.

“The Major League Baseball Umpires Association was made aware in Spring Training that Umpire Pat Hoberg was being investigated for potential violation of Major League Baseball’s sports betting policies. We have been working with Pat since then. We are now appealing the discipline issued by Major League Baseball. Because the appeal process is ongoing, the Union cannot discuss the matter. We will have no further comment until the appeal process is complete.”

–MLB Umpires Association, June 2024 statement on the Pat Hoberg investigation

Manfred: Integrity of Paramount Importance

Per MLB Rule 21, individuals determined to have gambled on any game where the "bettor has a duty to perform" will be subject to a lifetime ban.

The rule covers wagering violations for both players and umpires. For investigations on wagers of other MLB games, violators can face a suspension of one year.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred will hear Hoberg’s appeal, multiple outlets reported.

While Manfred has not publicly commented on the Hoberg appellate process, he did discuss several topics related to sports betting this week in an interview with Dan Patrick. Patrick, a 1997 Sports Emmy Award recipient, asked Manfred to reconcile MLB's ban of Pete Rose with the fact that the league now maintains commercial partnerships with some of North America’s top sportsbooks.

Rose, MLB’s all-time hit king, passed away at the age of 83 last month. Since Rose’s death, there has been growing public sentiment favoring his potential reinstatement by the league. If it were to do so, MLB would open up the possibility that Rose could be inducted posthumously into the Hall of Fame.

An investigation into Rose’s wagering activities by the Dowd Report found that Rose allegedly bet on at least 52 Cincinnati Reds games when he served as the team’s manager. While Rose admitted decades later that he wagered on baseball while manager of the Reds, he vehemently denied betting against his team.

In many respects, Manfred articulated the stark differences between sports integrity and league partnerships with as much detail as any league commissioner in recent years.  Manfred told Patrick that it is a privilege to “work in Major League Baseball” and to be an MLB player, and with that privilege comes certain obligations.

In this case, he believes there is an obligation for league employees to eschew wagering on the sport. To buttress his point, Manfred argued that involvement by those who work in the game presents a “threat to the integrity” of the sport. There is a distinction, Manfred emphasized, between that and wagering by fans who pose a minimum threat to game integrity.

“I don’t see any inconsistencies with the two,” Manfred told Patrick.

In terms of certain prop betting, Manfred informed the radio host that MLB has lobbied a number of states to outlaw wager types that can be viewed as “problematic.” During the MLB playoffs, leading sportsbooks have offered microbets on the speed of the next pitch to cross home plate. Eventually, Manfred believes some form of an automated system will be used to monitor balls and strikes.

While Patrick referred to the gambling controversy involving Shohei Ohtani in this week’s interview, Manfred did not comment directly on the situation. Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s former interpreter, has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $16 million from the star to feed his personal sports betting habit. MLB considers Ohtani a victim of fraud and has cleared him of any wrongdoing.

Competing in his first World Series, Ohtani is a slight favorite over Aaron Judge to win MVP of the Fall Classic. MLB umpire Carlos Torres is slated to work home plate for Friday’s Game 1.

At the moment, there is not a clear time frame for when Hoberg’s appeal will be completed.