(Reuters) — San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano received a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball for placing hundreds of bets on baseball, including games involving the Pittsburgh Pirates last season when he was a member of the team, MLB said on Tuesday.
According to MLB, Marcano did not appear in any of the games on which he placed bets as his Pirates-related wagers occurred after he suffered a season-ending knee injury last July.
“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,” MLB Commissioner Rob 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.”
According to data obtained from a legal sports betting operator, MLB concluded that Marcano placed 387 baseball bets, including 231 MLB-related wagers from Oct. 16-23, 2022 and from July 12, 2023 through Nov. 1, 2023.
In total, MLB said the 24-year-old Marcano bet more than $150,000 on baseball, with $87,319 of that on MLB-related bets.
MLB also said there is no evidence to suggest — and Marcano denies — that any outcomes in the baseball games on which he placed bets were compromised, influenced, or manipulated in any way.