What was once a vice relegated to the shadows has, with stunning speed, become the wallpaper of American life. We are told this new era of legalized sports gambling is merely a form of “fan engagement.” Turn on a broadcast, and you are not just a spectator; you are an investor. The odds scroll by in a constant, mesmerizing ticker, not just on the game’s outcome, but on the next pitch, the next play, the next free throw.

We were promised revenue. We were promised harmless fun. What we have received, instead, is the logical and inevitable harvest of this cultural rot. The past few weeks have provided a terrifyingly clear picture of the cost. We are witnessing the systemic, micro-level corruption of American sports, from its professional zeniths to its collegiate foundations. This is not an aberration. It is the new normal.

The integrity of the game is no longer a given. It is a commodity being sold to the highest bidder, one rigged pitch at a time. Frankly, I’m disgusted by it.

Consider the headlines from just the past few days. They paint a picture not of isolated “bad actors” but of a profound institutional vulnerability. The culture is corrupt and dishonest.

In Major League Baseball, we have the federal indictment of Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz. The accusations are not that they threw a game. It is something far more insidious, something that perfectly mirrors the new gambling landscape. They are charged with taking bribes to manipulate “prop bets.” Prosecutors allege they took payoffs to throw specific pitches, to ensure a ball instead of a strike, all to satisfy bettors who had wagered on the minutiae of the game. Read more»

Anthony B. Bradley | “The Corruption Of The Game” | November 11, 2025

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