One of the four MLB players reinstated last week, after a yearlong suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy, believes the league sent a message to uphold the integrity of the sport.
Key Takeaways
- A’s pitcher Michael Kelly trusts the integrity of baseball
- Reliever made 10 bets over 12 days in 2021 as a minor leaguer
- Kelly wants to focus on the present, not the past, and didn’t elaborate on handling the suspension
Athletics relief pitcher Michael Kelly spoke to The Athletic this week, understanding his punishment despite betting just $99.22 on baseball games.
“Regardless of what it looks like, how it was, I think fans and teams and players, everyone needs to trust the integrity of the game,” Kelly said.
“So, because of that, I understand why they did what they did, and they went with the suspension. They sent the message, and everyone needs to trust the integrity of the game. And I understand that completely.”
Don’t bet on it
Kelly placed 10 bets over 12 days in October 2021 while he was a minor leaguer in the Houston Astros' farm system. Nine of those wagers were on MLB games, including three on the Astros. He netted $28.30 during that time.
Three years later, MLB completed an investigation that led to the yearlong suspension of Kelly and three other players – Jay Groome (Padres), Andrew Saalfrank (Diamondbacks), and José Rodriguez – and a lifetime ban for former Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano for violating Rule 21.
Marcano placed nearly 400 bets on MLB games, including more than two dozen on his own team, that totaled over $87,000.
“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 last year.
Kelly gave no insights into how he handled a suspension for a small number of wagers, but he said he spent the year building a youth training facility with two former players.
“I really didn’t dwell on it much,” Kelly said. “I focused on what I can control. Being where my feet were, and staying in the moment. I’m not one to look back and dwell on something.”
Moving on
Kelly said he’s focused on the present, which involves returning to his form of 2024, when he posted a 2.59 ERA over 31 ⅓ innings pitched before the gambling violation suspension.
Kelly returned to the mound on June 5, the same day he was reinstated by MLB and activated by the Athletics, tossing 1 ⅓ innings and allowing no hits, striking out two batters, and walking one in a 14-3 victory over the Twins. He’s pitched in two other outings, allowing no runs and just two hits through 2 ⅓ innings.
“Just being out there and competing and helping the team, and doing my part. It was everything I could hope for,” Kelly said about his return.
The Diamondbacks kept Saalfrank and sent him to the Arizona Complex League last week. Rodriguez signed a minor league deal with the Phillies after he was non-tendered by the club. Groome remains a free agent after the Padres let him go.
