The Major League Baseball Players Association on Thursday proposed a ban on prop betting on individual players to help combat harassment from disgruntled gamblers, a union source told ESPN.
During collective bargaining negotiations with Major League Baseball, the MLBPA suggested a joint lobbying effort with the league to pursue a prohibition on prop betting at sportsbooks and with daily fantasy operators. Event contracts at prediction markets that are centered on individual player performance also would be prohibited, according to the source.
The ban would include all prop bets on individual players, placed before or during a game, including popular offerings such as the odds for a player to hit a home run.
An MLB official said the league would respond to the union's proposal during negotiations.
In addition, the MLBPA asked the league to clarify that players may engage in endorsements and sponsorships from legal betting operators, including prediction markets. The current CBA prohibits players from authorizing the use of their name, uniform number, image or likeness "to advertise, promote or encourage betting on (for or against) any baseball game or event."
The union also proposed adjustments to how sports betting investigations are handled and the process for players returning from gambling punishments, the source said.
Under the MLBPA proposal, players who are subject to betting investigations would be put on administrative leave. The union asked that players punished for sports betting violations be allowed to go on a 15-day unpaid rehabilitation assignment in the minor leagues near the end of their suspension.
Typical prop bets include wagers on statistical performances, such as the over/under on the number of strikeouts a pitcher records or the over/under on the number of hits a batter gets during a game. Prop bets can account for upward of 20% to 30% of the total amount wagered on a game, according to multiple sportsbook sources.
In November, after two Cleveland Guardians pitchers were indicted on charges related to an alleged pitch-rigging betting scheme, MLB and its partner sportsbooks initiated a $250 limit on first-pitch prop bets. Additionally, first-pitch prop bets are prohibited from being included in parlays at most sportsbooks, per MLB's request.
The NCAA also has been lobbying against individual player prop bets and Thursday asked the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) to consider banning such wagers on college athletes.