On Monday, the case was finally closed on MLB’s second major gambling-related incident of 2024 as umpire Pat Hoberg’s employment was terminated by commissioner Rob Manfred after his appeal was upheld by the league.
The investigation regarding potential violations of MLB’s sports betting policies by Hoberg commenced in February 2024. MLB reached a conclusion and notified Hoberg that he was fired effective May 31, 2024, but he chose to appeal this decision.
Although the investigation found no evidence that the former umpire placed bets on baseball directly or that he manipulated games in any way, there were other factors that contributed to a lack of trust in his ability to maintain the integrity of the game of baseball.
The Los Angeles Dodgers had two games umpired by Hoberg in which there bets placed from his shared account, both from the 2021 season.
On August 15, 2021, Hoberg was the home plate umpire for the Dodgers’ game against the New York Mets.
His strike zone accuracy score was 98.89%; he missed only two pitches in the game. Hoberg’s accuracy score in this game was higher than his 2021 season average (98.59%) and higher than the umpire staff average in 2021 (97.56%).
His two missed pitches were both in low-leverage situations and benefitted the Los Angeles Dodgers. Six other calls were within the “buffer zone” of which four went against the Dodgers and two went against the Mets.
The money line bet for $3,200 on the Dodgers won and paid out $5,200.
Hoberg had no effect on the outcome of the game as the Dodgers beat the Mets 14-4. It is worth noting that this game was significant to the Dodgers, as most games were down the stretch of the 2021 season while they were locked in a fierce divisional race with the San Francisco Giants.
The Dodgers remained four games back of the Giants after the events of August 15, 2021 concluded.
On October 8, 2021, Hoberg was the third base umpire for the Dodgers’ game against the Giants in the National League Divisional Series and did not have any plays that were close enough to be logged in MLB’s evaluation system.
The money line bet for $2,000 and run line bet for $3,000 on the Giants both won and paid out a combined $9,300.
As the third base umpire with no plays of note for him to make rulings on, Hoberg could not have affected the outcome of this game even if he wanted to. Regardless, the Dodgers ended up defeating the Giants in the NLDS in five games.
Reasoning behind MLB’s decision to fire Pat Hoberg
Multiple shared sports betting accounts with a professional poker player and friend who bet on baseball, Individual A, is at the center of Hoberg’s scandal.
Of the 141 bets placed from Individual A’s accounts, eight involved games that Hoberg umpired or had responsibility for replay reviews. This, as well as other facts of the case, influenced MLB’s choice to uphold their initial decision.
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