This report is reprinted here with the permission of John Dowd. The contents are Copyright 1989, 1999 by John M. Dowd, Esq. and the Baseball Archive. Any public or commercial use, distribution or duplication of these materials without written permission from The Baseball Archive is a violation of federal copyright law. Use of this site constitutes agreement with these terms.

I. Introduction

On February 23, 1989, this firm was retained and empowered by the Office of the Commissioner [ 1 ] to investigate Peter Edward Rose, the Manager of the Cincinnati Reds Baseball Club, pursuant to the Major League Baseball Agreement. [ 2 ] Your decision was based on the fact that the Director of Security for Major League Baseball had received reports during the past year that Pete Rose had bet on Major League Baseball games, including games of the Cincinnati Reds, in violation of Major League Rule 21. Rule 21(d) provides:

Any player, umpire, or club or league official or employee, who shall bet any sum whatsoever upon any baseball game in connection with which the bettor has no duty to perform, shall be declared ineligible for one year.

Any player, umpire, or club or league official or employee, who shall bet any sum whatsoever upon any baseball game in connection with which the bettor has a duty to perform, shall be declared permanently ineligible.

Betting on baseball by a participant of the game is corrupt because it erodes and destroys the integrity of the game of baseball. Betting also exposes the game to the influences of forces who seek to control the game to their own ends. Betting on one's team gives rise to the ultimate conflict of interest in which the individual player/bettor places his personal financial interest above the interests of the team.

Gambling is conducted in secret by its participants. Normally little is recorded and what is written down is destroyed shortly after payment of the wager. Payments are often made in cash by runners between the bookmaker and the gambler because cash is fungible and difficult to trace. The runners provide insulation and, thus, deniability to the gambler and the bookmaker. The telephone is used to conduct the wagering business by the participants. It is often difficult to determine who is wagering with whom because many phones are used by the bookmakers, runners and gamblers. The product of gambling -- particularly sports action -- is debt -- enormous debt which leads to obligation, which leads to corruption.

The secret gambling enterprise is typically exposed only when a participant is apprehended and begins to cooperate with the authorities. The difficulty for the investigator lies in the gathering of the corroborative evidence. The gambling enterprise is designed to leave few tracks, and upon exposure, to provide alibis to the participants.

Footnotes:

1) Peter Ueberroth was Commissioner until March 31, 1989. On April 1, 1989, A. Bartlett Giamatti became Commissioner.

2) Article I, Section 2 of the Major League Agreement empowers the Commissioner to, inter alia:

• investigate ... any act, transaction or practice charged, alleged or suspected to be nit in the best interests of ... Baseball.
• determine, after investigation, what preventive, remedial or punitive action is appropriate in the premises, and to take such action either against Major Leagues, Major League Clubs or individuals, as the case may be.
• formulate ... the rules of procedure to be observed by the Commissioner and all other parties in connection with the discharge of his duties. Such rules shall always recognize the right of any party in the interest to appear before the Commissioner and be heard.

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