Former Oakland Athletics minor leaguer Pete Bayer has been on the MLB Ineligible List since the beginning of the 2021 season. He revealed publically that he was denied eligibility for the third straight year by MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred.
Bayer took to Twitter on Wednesday to discuss his situation openly and detailed the exact reasoning as to why he was ultimately suspended.
Some personal news:
Since the beginning of the 2021, I have been on the MLB Ineligible List due to placing wagers on a few MLB games during the 2020 COVID year when MILB did not have a season.
I am currently still ineligible for the 2023 season, a third straight year. pic.twitter.com/623z0s6BXk
— Peter Bayer (@PeterBayer47) February 15, 2023
The 2020 MILB Season did not happen due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. During this time, Pete Bayer placed wagers on “a few” MLB games, which he seemed to believe was okay since he and other Minor League players were not officially employed with the MLB.
He was then placed on the MLB Ineligible list in 2021 upon signing with the Cincinnati Reds organization. Bayer revealed on Twitter Wednesday that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has denied his request to be taken off the Ineligible List for the upcoming 2023 MLB season.
My goal was never to go public with this. However, the Commissioner’s Office decided today to place me on the Ineligible List for another season. pic.twitter.com/nQuyJ9KPNe
— Peter Bayer (@PeterBayer47) February 15, 2023
Given the circumstances, many MLB fans took to social media upon seeing Bayer’s side of the story to sympathize with his situation.
Normally, I would not be sympathetic to a player gambling, even in the circumstances cited below, but now that MLB has decided to profit heavily off relationships with gambling platforms, it has lost the moral authority to take such a hard line. Bayer should be reinstated. https://t.co/EPTFMWIYzq
— The Captain's Blog (@williamnyy23) February 16, 2023
In my personal opinion, this is getting out of hand, especially considering the astronomical revenue that Major League Baseball is making off of gambling. https://t.co/vYvfoA1eEZ
— Chris Correa (@ChrisCorrea15) February 16, 2023
Gambling is wrong.
This moment of moral clarity is brought to you by bet365, the official sports book of your local team. https://t.co/7HPzfSo0q1
— Gov. (@BillLePetomane) February 16, 2023
What an insane story. MLB is so out of touch with reality + clearly doesn’t care about players as people. https://t.co/vB676OXn26
— Jeff Spiegel (@JeffSpiegel) February 16, 2023
This situation is far different than the infamous Pete Rose gambling saga, who bet on Cincinnati Reds’ games in 1987 while managing the team.
It can be a slippery slope when you bring players betting on games into the picture. However, a Minor Leaguer betting on MLB games during a time when the MILB was not actively playing games seems to be a circumstance where the player should be forgiven after two years on the MLB Ineligible List already.
