Scandals aren't slowing America's sports-betting boom. But they've led some prop bets to shrink to a maximum win of just $200.

By Weston Blasi

The NBA, MLB and NFL have all worked with betting companies to put restrictions on prop bets

Major League Baseball has put a $200 cap on prop bets for individual pitches after recent betting scandals, including the indictment of Cleveland Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase.

Gambling scandals keep steeping sports betting in controversy - but don't bet against this growing industry just yet.

Following the Nov. 9 indictment of two Cleveland Guardians players accused of rigging pitches to help gamblers win almost half a million dollars, Major League Baseball announced new restrictions that cap prop bets on individual pitches at $200. This comes on the heels of both the NBA and the NCAA restricting prop bets - wagers placed on a specific statistic within a game - after being rocked by betting scandals.

The game-changing restrictions, pushed by MLB and agreed to by sportsbook operators, seem to run against the rapidly expanding sports-betting industry - which has grown from $308 million wagered when it was first legalized in June 2018, to over $6 billion in August 2025.

Sportsbooks, of course, want to keep expanding into more states and get people to bet more - not less. But now that MLB sees popular pitch-level prop bets as too risky, it's making the first rollback of a betting product since wagering on sports became legal several years ago.

Individual-pitch bets, such as those on pitch velocity or balls and strikes, carry "heightened integrity risks," according to MLB. The league explained in recent statement that these bets are problematic because they center on "one-off events" that can be manipulated by a single player but won't impact the game's result. Limitations to these props were agreed upon by sportsbooks who collectively account for over 98% of the U.S. betting market. The rules also prohibit these bets from being included in parlays.

The new $200 cap on pitch props dramatically reduces the upside for athletes or gamblers to attempt to rig a moment in a game, since a $200 payout is not worth the risk of a lifetime MLB ban and possible jail time.

Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz face up to 65 years in prison if convicted on all charges, according to the Eastern District of New York. They also face a lifetime ban from MLB. The federal indictment alleges that the pitchers helped two unnamed gamblers win at least $460,000 on bets placed on the speed and outcome of certain pitches. Both Clase and Ortiz have denied any wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

But the American Gaming Association doesn't think that restricting prop bets at legal sportsbooks is the answer to stop bad actors.

Joe Maloney, senior vice president of strategic communications at the AGA, told MarketWatch there should be "no blanket prohibitions on prop bets." He said legal sportsbooks have shown they can spot insider betting quickly - sending a message that cheaters will get caught.

"If you eliminate the ability for that fan to have that type of engagement, you're giving a green light to that fan to go get that action someplace else," he said. And finding an illegal sportsbook without such betting limits is pretty easy these days. "In the online world, that action is a click away on a slick website," he added.

Using unauthorized offshore sportsbooks can lead to risks for gamblers. They face personal legal exposure, and since U.S. courts lack jurisdiction, there is no recourse if the book refuses a legitimate payout.

Through their partnerships, sports leagues like MLB have data-sharing agreements with sportsbooks, which alert them in instances of suspicious betting activity. Nearly all betting scandals involving players have been identified through those data-sharing agreements, industry insiders told MarketWatch.

"The legalized sports-betting industry is built on a foundation of dialogue and collaboration with our league partners and the states in which we operate," Christian Genetski, president of Flutter Entertainment's (FLUT) FanDuel, said in a statement. "This initiative illustrates our unwavering commitment to building a legal and regulated market that roots out abuses by those who seek to undermine fair competition and damage the integrity of the games we love."

But despite a string of recent sports-betting scandals - Calvin Ridley was involved in an NFL betting scandal that led to a yearlong suspension; multiple NCAA men's basketball players were banned for betting on games; and NBA players Terry Rozier and Chauncy Billups were accused of being involved in a "brazen sports corruption" probe - sports betting is unlikely to stop spreading to more U.S. states, even if some popular bets are being restricted.

"States will keep going fully into gambling and sports betting," Lisa Delpy Neirotti, associate professor and director of George Washington University's Sports Management Programs, told MarketWatch. "You can't put the toothpaste back into the tube."

C.J. Fisher, attorney at Fox Rothschild who focuses on gaming law, agrees. Fisher said these scandals will "absolutely not" slow legalization, because states want the additional tax revenue from sportsbooks. Approximately $9.6 billion in total tax revenue has been accumulated since 2018, according to Legal Sports Report.

And Americans broadly still support legalized sports betting, which is allowed in some form in 40 states, plus Washington, D.C. A recent AGA survey found nearly three-quarters (74%) of Americans support legal, regulated sports betting in their state, with broad bipartisan approval.

The MLB's newest restrictions on prop bets may provide a blueprint for other leagues. The NBA recently instituted similar limits on prop wagers for two-way contract players, and the NFL reiterated its efforts to limit or prohibit certain prop bets.

So sports betting isn't shrinking in America - only certain prop bets are.

Read on: Sportsbooks were called 'victims' in new NBA gambling probe. Here's what DraftKings, FanDuel have to say.

-Weston Blasi

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

11-19-25 1712ET