Major League Baseball fired umpire Pat Hoberg on Monday for purposefully erasing electronic messages related to the league’s investigation and for sharing his legal sports gambling accounts with a friend who bet on baseball games.
Hoberg did not officiate last season, and the sports book alerted MLB to the matter, which prompted the league to launch an inquiry in February. On May 24, MLB senior vice president of on-field operations Michael Hill suggested that Hoberg be dismissed, despite MLB claiming the investigation found no proof that Hoberg directly wagered on baseball or affected games.
On Monday, Commissioner Rob Manfred declared that he had upheld Hill’s ruling. Hoberg is eligible to ask for reinstatement no early than 2026 spring training, and he is one of the best umpires at estimating the strike zone.
According to MLB, the friend wagered on baseball 141 times between April 2, 2021, and November 1, 2023, winning roughly $35,000 in total.
In order to preserve our first priority—preserving the integrity of our games for the fans—we must strictly enforce Major League Baseball’s regulations banning sports betting behavior, Manfred said in a statement. No proof that Mr. Hoberg directly bet on baseball or that he or anybody else altered games was found after a thorough examination.
But his incredibly bad decision to share betting accounts with a professional poker player he had reason to suspect bet on baseball and who actually did bet on baseball from the shared accounts, along with his removal of messages, at least gives the impression of improper behavior that calls for the harshest punishment. As a result, there is good reason to sustain Mr. Hoberg’s discharge for not upholding the integrity of baseball and for not adhering to strict personal conduct standards.
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Hoberg, who is currently 38, made his major league debut in 2014. According to computer tracking, he had an unprecedented umpire’s perfect game during Game 2 of the 2022 World Series, correctly calling balls and strikes on all 129 taken pitches.
In a statement, Hoberg stated, “I accept full responsibility for the judgmental errors detailed in today’s statement.” I will always feel ashamed and embarrassed about those mistakes. My behavior did not meet the high standards for personal conduct expected of Major League Baseball umpires.
However, just to be clear, I have never wagered on baseball and I never would. I have never given someone information with the intention of placing a baseball wager, and I never will. I have always placed the highest priority on maintaining the integrity of the game. I sincerely apologize for my errors to Major League Baseball and the baseball community at large. I promise to grow from them and become a better person going forward.
Hoberg had the right to challenge Hill’s ruling under the umpires’ collective bargaining agreement, which led MLB to hire an impartial fact-finder who reported to Manfred.
MLB claimed that the sports book informed it that on January 30 of last year, Hoberg opened an account in his name, and that an electronic device linked to the account had accessed an account belonging to someone else who had placed a baseball wager.