OT: Beeston warns changes to sports betting will hurt game

[darth_federer]

OTTAWA - One of the architects of the championship Toronto Blue Jays invoked one of the darkest chapters in baseball history Wednesday as he told a Senate committee that proposed sports gambling legislation would undermine the game.

Repeatedly citing the 1919 "Black Sox" scandal, when members of the Chicago White Sox took bribes to throw the World Series, Blue Jays president Paul Beeston strongly objected to the legalization of single-game betting in Canada.

As it stands now, the Criminal Code makes it illegal in Canada to bet on fewer than three games at a time, which is why Pro-Line players and others must pick the results of numerous games to make any money.

Introduced in the House of Commons by Windsor-area NDP MP Joe Comartin in September 2011, bill C-290 would remove that section of the code so provinces could set up their own individual rules and regulations for betters to put money on individual games.


But in voicing their objections, both Beeston and Major League Baseball legal counsel Thomas Ostertag questioned the claims and said the move would increase the threat of players throwing games and lead to fans questioning calls on the field.

The two baseball officials said they only learned about the proposed change earlier this month after it veritably flew through the House of Commons without any opposition or even debate and received all-party support.

The bill is currently on the verge of being approved, pending the Senate committee and one more vote in the Red Chamber - a fact that undoubtedly has many gaming commissions and provincial authorities salivating.

But Ostertag said he has been in contact with other sports leagues who are also concerned with the bill, and they are expected to join the attack in an all-out effort to scuttle the proposal in the Senate before it becomes law.

Ostertag would not rule out launch some type of legal action if the bill passed.

http://www.canada.com/Jays+president+wa ... story.html

I dont really gamble so Im not sure how this affects games but it seems like a weak argument and it looks like the bill will pass. The legal action would be messy though

[Fairview4Life]

It is indeed a pretty stupid argument. Forcing people to make parlays is stealing their money, albeit willingly.

[Osiris]

I can't see someone who has both the ability to affect the outcome as well as a betting interest in the game being real concerned about placing their bet in a legal fashion to begin with.

[baulderdash77]

There's no way that any type of legal action could do anything. The House of Commons writes laws and the court enforces them. If the House just passed a bill to decriminalize something then there's nothing that can be done short of a challenge that it violates someone's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. A corporation doesn't have these so there's no basis for a lawsuit.

I'm glad they're making these changes. People bet on games already using online sites in different countries. The provincial run betting sites are flat out cheating people out of their money. At least the money going forward will stay in the country.

[Secueritae]

Yup I hate proline because of the parlays, and the odds of proline are usually worse than online books.

Only thing I hate about online books is they withdraw my money automatically when I deposit but when I cashout it takes 3-5 business days, which is the only advantage to Proline

[Skin Blues]

I can't see someone who has both the ability to affect the outcome as well as a betting interest in the game being real concerned about placing their bet in a legal fashion to begin with.

This pretty much sums it up.

I would welcome single game betting with Proline. They will still probably offer terrible odds though. They've created their own monopoly and don't hide the fact they can exploit it.

[Fairview4Life]

There's no way that any type of legal action could do anything. The House of Commons writes laws and the court enforces them. If the House just passed a bill to decriminalize something then there's nothing that can be done short of a challenge that it violates someone's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. A corporation doesn't have these so there's no basis for a lawsuit.

I assume none of us are lawyers, but I could see there being some sort of agreement between MLB and the Ontario government when the Jays (and Quebec with the Expos) were created to limit gambling, and it might be possible to sue over something like that...maybe.

[Mattd97]

haha i love teh image of a bunch of millionaire athletes betting against themselves on proline

[distracted]

Unless this type of betting is against the rules everywhere (it's legal in Vegas right?) then having it illegal in one locale does nothing to stop the potential Beeston is talking about.

Does someone who's willing to pay for someone to throw a game care that he has to go down to Vegas to bet on the game?

[Skin Blues]

There are illegal bookies online and in Ontario, you don't need to go to Vegas. It's pretty ridiculous to think athletes would bet on themselves via Proline. I can picture Brandon Morrow going into Shoppers Drug Mart and filling out a form betting against the Jays on a day that he's supposed to start. haha.

[Homer Jay]

These athletes risk life-time bans by being caught betting on their own teams. With the maximum bets you can place on Pro-line is it really worth a multi-million dollar career over those small potatoes? I'm not worried about the players.

Now officials on the other hand are the much bigger risk here, as those bets represent a much larger share compared to their income. But, as we saw with Donaghy, there are other avenues for them to bet as well.

[Wo1verine]

Proline has a max bet limit of 100 dollars!

Who's throwing games for that?