Major League Baseball took a significant step on Tuesday by announcing a lifetime ban for San Diego Padres utility man Tucupita Marcano for violating its sports betting policy. In addition to Marcano, the league also suspended four other players for one year for similar sports betting violations. One of these players is Jay Groome, the former No. 1 pitching prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization.
Groome, who was the Red Sox’ first-round pick in the 2016 MLB Draft, received a one-year suspension from MLB for placing 32 MLB-related bets from July 22, 2020, to July 24, 2021, while playing for the Greenville Drive, Boston’s High-A affiliate. Despite not participating in any of the games he bet on, Groome violated MLB’s sports betting policy by wagering on games as an active player. Unfortunately, Groome did not have much success with his bets, losing a total of $433.54 on his wagers.
The Red Sox had high hopes for Groome, who came to the organization straight out of high school as a hard-throwing left-hander at age 17. However, injuries, including Tommy John surgery in May 2018, hindered his progress in Boston. Groome was eventually promoted to Triple-A Worcester in July 2022 before being traded to the Padres in August of the same year.
Despite posting a 3.60 ERA in three starts at San Diego’s Triple-A affiliate this season, Groome has yet to make an appearance in an MLB game. The trade to the Padres landed the Red Sox several players in return, including Eric Hosmer, Max Ferguson, Corey Rosier, and cash considerations.