Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred is faced with a significant decision regarding the punishment of Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, who have been indicted for gambling violations. The case has sparked discussions on justice and mercy, with Manfred urged to avoid the ‘easy’ option and deliver a message that promotes integrity in the sport.
This is an argument for mercy. Somebody please send it to Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred. Among the most important decisions Commissioner Rob Manfred will make in the course of his career as baseball’s top cop — and the one for which he will be most remembered — is how he punishes Cleveland Guardian pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz. Commissioner Manfred: Don’t do the easy thing. Do the thing that teaches the most people about the best way to act. Teach justice and mercy. It’s a big moment. You can’t go wrong with justice and mercy.
As of today, the most memorable decision Manfred has made was an awful one — he pulled the All-Star Game from Atlanta in 2021. Manfred’s decision was taken in response to Georgia’s then-new voting law, which left-wing activists had labeled ‘voter suppression.’ (It was not, only absurdist ideologues still argue anymore that it was, and we have to assume that Manfred got truly awful advice as politics isn’t his world.) The All-Star game and MLB Draft were relocated to Denver that year. It was a truly dumb move, a capitulation to ‘woke,’ and one for which many serious people will never give him a pass. Team Manfred figured out that it had been a face plant and, in 2023, decided to award Atlanta the All-Star Game this past summer. Good. One mistake corrected.
Manfred has also overseen the introduction of a pitch clock and the implantation of the rule placing a runner on second base to start extra innings in MLB.
Both changes are generally seen as major improvements to the game, but the decision to pull the All-Star game from Atlanta left a mark on Manfred’s reputation for judgment.
Now Manfred has a chance to repair that scar by exercising excellent judgment.
Both Clase and Ortiz are accused of cheating by throwing purposefully bad single pitches in a game — pitches which are bet on by the world via what are called ‘prop bets.’ The propositions in these cases seems to have been that Clase or Ortiz would not throw a strike on a particular pitch. Even a casual fan knows that’s a pretty easy thing for a pitcher to guarantee.
So if a pitcher agrees beforehand that the first pitch he throws in a game (or an inning if he expects to pitch longer than one), the bet is placed. The problem here is that they were involved in a gamble that is part of the broader trend of sports betting, which has become a significant revenue source for leagues like MLB. The case highlights the complexities of balancing the financial interests of the league with the integrity of the sport.
Everyone that is saying ‘lifetime ban’ is actually saying ‘ruin their lives,’ because they have one skill set. This sort of penalty is disproportionate. MLB, like the NFL and NBA, have welcomed sports gambling into their revenue streams. The assumption that every game is sheep-dipped in wagers by millions of bettors is a given. How to punish cheaters taking advantage of their position?
The default answer of ‘lifetime ban’ is not the answer. Especially not when the players come from a poor country and almost certainly from educational systems that are not known for their excellence. School is mandatory in the DR only until age 14, though the DR does have private schools as well as public schools. I don’t know the particulars of either Clase’s or Ortiz’s family structure and status, but, their profile is not likely to be that of a MLB draftee coming out of college or a high-profile program for older teenagers.
What would be an appropriate punishment? Perhaps 90% of their salary in year one of their punishment goes to MLB for distribution to charities of MLB’s choice; year 2 sees 30% go to those charities, year 3 70% etc. If they stick in the big leagues for another 10 years they can keep their 11th year salary. And, as noted, they have to be assigned by the Commissioner to another team not named the Guardians.
I don’t know if Commissioner Manfred recalls his Shakespeare. But if he does, I hope he recalls the great speech in favor of mercy by Portia to Shylock in that play:
“The quality of mercy is not strain’d.
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest:
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The thronèd monarch better than his crown.
His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;
But mercy is above this sceptered sway.
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings;
It is an attribute to God Himself;
And earthly power doth then show likest God’s”
Don’t ban them for life, Commissioner Manfred. Make it severe, but not career-ending. Send a message, but not the predictable one. This week of Thanksgiving, everyone ought to be able to recall those who have done them good turns. This time next year, I hope Clase and Ortiz and their families are thankful for a commissioner who was brave enough not to do the obvious thing.