Former Red Sox pitcher Jay Groome suspended for MLB betting violations – NBC Sports Boston

Major League Baseball made a statement on Tuesday, officially banning San Diego Padres all-rounder Tucupita Marcano for life for violating sports betting guidelines.

The league also imposed one-year suspensions on four other players for similar sports betting violations, one of whom is the former Boston Red Sox top pitcher.

Padres left-hander Jay Groome, the Red Sox’s first-round pick (12th overall) in the 2016 MLB Draft, was suspended for one year by MLB on Tuesday for bets he made while with the organization.

According to the league, Groome placed 32 MLB-related bets from July 22, 2020, to July 24, 2021, while with the Greenville Drive, Boston’s High-A affiliate. Groome placed 24 of those bets on the Red Sox’s major league club – all on the final outcome of the game – and wagered a total of $453.74 on his 30 bets (an average of about $15 per bet).

Although MLB determined that Groome did not appear in any of the games he wagered on, Groome still violated MLB’s sports betting policies by betting on games as an active player. However, Groome did not do particularly well with his bets either: He only paid out two of his 30 bets and lost a total of $433.54 on his wagers, according to MLB.

The Red Sox had high hopes for Groome, a hard-throwing, 6-foot-6 left-hander who joined the Red Sox straight out of high school in 2016 at age 17. However, he never fully realized his potential in Boston, in part because of injury: In May 2018, Groome underwent Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2018 season.

Groome was promoted to Triple-A Worcester in July 2022, but the Red Sox traded him to the Padres in August in exchange for Eric Hosmer, Max Ferguson, Corey Rosier and cash.

The 25-year-old posted a 3.60 ERA in three starts for San Diego’s Triple-A affiliate team this season, but has not yet played in an MLB game.