CREATED BY SPORTS BETTORS FOR SPORTS BETTORS
LET’S HEAR YOUR STORY
David Fletcher is continuing to play in the Atlanta Braves' minor-league system while MLB probes a report of him gambling illegally.
The infielder was in the lineup for the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers on Tuesday, one day after ESPN reported that MLB had opened an investigation into his involvement with illegal bookmaker Mathew Bowyer, the same bookie involved in the Ippei Mizuhara-Shohei Ohtani scandal.
Fletcher was previously reported to have made bets on sports with Bowyer, but not on baseball. Placing illegal bets is still a violation of MLB rules, though, with punishment at the discretion of commissioner Rob Manfred.
Another significant issue might be Fletcher's close friend Colby Schultz, a former Kansas City Royals minor leaguer. Schultz was reported to have placed bets on baseball, including Los Angeles Angels games in which Fletcher played. Schultz was identified as "Bookmaker 3" in the criminal complaint against Mizuhara, Ohtani's former interpreter.
Fletcher was already a bit player in the Mizuhara scandal, which culminated in the interpreter agreeing to plead guilty to two felonies after allegedly stealing $17 million from Ohtani. It was reportedly through Fletcher, Ohtani's Angels teammate for six years, that Mizuhara met Bowyer at a team hotel poker game.
ESPN notes that MLB's investigation will likely depend on information from the federal government, which has been investigating Bowyer for months, and Fletcher himself. The league is reportedly expected to reach out to law enforcement for assistance. Fletcher can reportedly refuse to cooperate if he can claim it could make him subject to criminal investigation.
Even before his involvement with Bowyer was reported, it had been a down year for Fletcher. His numbers took a step back in the three seasons after he signed a five-year, $26 million extension with the Angels in 2021. That slide culminated in a trade to the Braves last offseason, and with Atlanta, he is little more than organizational depth.
The 29-year-old Fletcher is hitting .244/.308/.261 at Triple-A this season and went 2-for-8 during a brief stint with the big-league club last month. If anything, his highlights have come on the mound, where he has become a knuckleball-throwing emergency reliever for the Stripers.
Daniel Weinman was crowned winner of the 2023 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event on Monday, taking home a record breaking $12.1 million in winnings. Weinman had to outlast the other 10,043 entrants to take home the prize and get his hands on his share of live poker’s largest ever prize pool – a staggering $93,399,900. As well as taking home the prize money, 35-year-old Weinman also got his hands on the WSOP Main Event bracelet. The huge bracelet contains 500 grams of 10-karat yellow gold, as well as 2,352 various precious gemstones.
Daniel Weinman won the World Series of Poker's main event world championship on Monday in Las Vegas, earning $12.1 million along the way. Playing in the tournament for a 16th year, Weinman was tops in a deep pool of 10,043 players vying for $93.39 million. His victory came after just 164 hands at the final table. "I was honestly on the fence about even coming back and playing this tournament," the 35-year-old Atlanta native told reporters afterward. Weinman's final table featured Jan-Peter Jachtmann, who landed in fourth place and took home $3 million, as well as Toby Lewis, who finished seventh and secured $1.42 million. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the main event's entry pool far outpaced the previous record of 8,773 set in 2006. "I've always kind of felt that poker was kind of going in a dying direction, but to see the numbers at the World Series this year has been incredible," Weinman said. "And to win this main event, it doesn't feel real. I mean, [there's] so much luck in a poker tournament. I thought I played very well." Steven Jones finished second, securing $6.5 million. And Adam Walton settled for third and a $4 million prize.
Your experience on this site will be improved by allowing cookies.
