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Morning Edition

November 11, 2025

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MLB is moving quickly after federal indictments of two Guardians pitchers. The league is implementing nationwide limits on pitch-level prop bets and, along with top sportsbooks, says a $200 cap is designed to protect the integrity of the game. Will it?

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]] and David Rumsey [[link removed]]

MLB Caps Pitch-Level Prop Bets at $200 After Guardians Indictments [[link removed]]

Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Major League Baseball has moved quickly in the wake of federal indictments of two Guardians pitchers [[link removed]], unveiling a nationwide plan with top sportsbooks to restrict proposition bets on the sport.

The league said Monday afternoon that all of its authorized gaming operators will cap wagers on pitch-level markets at $200 and exclude those bets from parlays. Those authorized gaming operators, which include top names such as FanDuel and DraftKings, have access to official league data and collectively comprise more than 98% of the U.S. betting market.

The shift acknowledges that pitch-level markets—such as whether an individual pitch is a ball or a strike and its velocity—are particularly vulnerable to single players. Many other prop bets in baseball, such as the number of runs scored in an inning, involve multiple events and numerous players.

“I commend the industry for working with us to take action on a national solution to address the risk posed by these pitch-level markets, which are particularly vulnerable to integrity concerns,” said MLB commissioner Rob Manfred in a statement.

The new rules arrived a little more than 24 hours after the U.S. Department of Justice indicted Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz on wire fraud conspiracy charges, with each player potentially facing 65 years in prison. Rigging individual pitches to benefit bettor co-conspirators is at the heart of the indictments against the pair.

Long before these charges, however, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine had called for a prop-bet ban, had worked closely with the league on this issue, and was part of Monday’s announcement.

“Major League Baseball is taking affirmative steps to protect the integrity of the game and reduce the incentives to participate in improper betting schemes,” DeWine said. “I urge other sports leagues to follow Major League Baseball’s example with similar action.”

Looking Ahead

A key question going forward is whether the $200 ban will be enough to curb the illegal activity around pitch-level prop bets. Part of what makes the case surrounding Clase and Ortiz so striking is the rather minimal amount of money involved. Other bettors won more than $450,000 in fraudulent wagers due to the rigged pitches, according to allegations against the two, an amount much harder to amass now with the cap in place.

The pitchers, however, received bribes as small as $5,000 for rigging pitches, something that in Clase’s case was a tiny fraction of the five-year, $20 million contract he has with the Guardians.

Participating sportsbooks said they are hopeful the MLB cap will be impactful.

“This initiative illustrates our unwavering commitment to building a legal and regulated market that roots out abuses,” said FanDuel president Christian Genetski.

Speaking before Game 1 of the World Series last month, MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark said he would support an outright ban of prop bets in baseball [[link removed]], conveying significant concern about player safety.

“We’re in support of removing any types of bets, prop or otherwise, that could create issues for our guys on the field,” Clark said. “We’ve heard a lot about prop bets of late, and it was one of the things we were concerned about from Day 1 as well.”

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Brian Kelly Pushes LSU for $53M Buyout, Refuses Partial Offers [[link removed]]

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The Brian Kelly era may be over at LSU, but the school is still dealing with the financial ramifications of the coach’s $53 million buyout [[link removed]]—the second largest in college football history.

Last week, Kelly’s lawyers informed LSU [[link removed]] that he wants the school to “fulfill its contractual obligation” to pay him the “full liquidated damages,” after rejecting two separate settlement offers of $25 million and $30 million, according to The New Orleans Advocate.

While Kelly’s representatives said he remains “open to any additional offers,” they also said they intend to “pursue all available legal remedies” if LSU doesn’t confirm its intent to pay the full amount.

LSU is sorting through the Kelly fallout and searching for its next head coach, under new leadership [[link removed]], with athletic director Verge Ausberry and university president Wade Rousse just starting their new roles this month. Former AD Scott Woodward—who drew the ire [[link removed]] of Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry—was fired Oct. 30 [[link removed]].

Kelly’s high-priced exit is the latest example of complicated college football coaching buyouts [[link removed]], which can vary greatly depending on the terms in each deal.

Penn State, for example, owes James Franklin nearly $50 million, but it could end up paying him much less [[link removed]] due to offset language that would lower the cost if Franklin accepts another job in coaching or sports media. Kelly’s contract contains similar offset language, which would potentially come into effect if a settlement is not reached.

Jimbo Fisher’s record $77 million buyout [[link removed]] from Texas A&M—the most expensive of all time—did not include any offset language.

Ellison Signals ‘Opportunistic’ Moves, Highlights CBS Sports Success [[link removed]]

Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

CBS Sports parent company Paramount is looking to be “opportunistic” in the market regarding potential acquisitions, even without mentioning Warner Bros. Discovery specifically in its first post-merger earnings report.

Making his first comments to Wall Street since leading Skydance Media’s $8 billion acquisition of Paramount this past summer [[link removed]], company chair and CEO David Ellison avoided specifically referencing WBD but said the company is after greater scale.

“As it relates to [mergers and acquisitions], everything for us is going to tie back to, ‘Does it accelerate our core principles?’” Ellison said. “We’re fortunate that we have the balance sheet to be able to be opportunistic when we think M&A will accelerate our goals, but we’re also disciplined, long-term owner-operators.”

Ellison additionally cautioned, “There’s no must-have for us.”

The remarks arrived as WBD, the parent company of TNT Sports, has formally put itself up for sale [[link removed]], also drawing varying levels of interest from entities such as Netflix [[link removed]] and NBC Sports parent company Comcast [[link removed]]. Paramount has reportedly made multiple bids for WBD that have been rebuffed.

“The company we acquired we believe has an incredible foundation, but there’s more work to be done,” Ellison said, referencing the original Skydance-Paramount deal.

Company Results

Paramount, meanwhile, said it generated $6.7 billion in third-quarter revenue, with operating income of $324 million, and a $257 million net loss, though the losses began to wane after Skydance’s takeover closed in early August.

The company projects revenue growth of 1% to 4% in the fourth quarter compared to the same period last year in the prior regime, then $30 billion in total revenue for all of 2026. Layoffs and other cost-cutting measures, however, continue to be significant within Paramount, and the company detailed an updated plan to shed at least $3 billion in costs, up from a prior target of $2 billion. A majority of that figure will come from “non-labor” costs, but Paramount ultimately expects to slash more than 2,000 jobs.

More specifically to sports, Paramount had strong praise for CBS Sports, which is in the midst of one of its strongest NFL seasons regarding viewership. A Week 9 game between the Chiefs and Bills in particular drew an average of 30.8 million [[link removed]], the league’s second-best audience so far this season. Paramount also lauded the recent acquisition of rights for UFC [[link removed]] and Zuffa Boxing [[link removed]], calling both entities from TKO Group Holdings “highly complementary to our existing sports portfolio.”

Ellison said the deals “really make Paramount the home for combat sports.”

The initial earnings report from Paramount following the Skydance deal, however, contained no shortage of corporate speak. The phrase “North Star” was used to detail corporate priorities seven times in a letter to shareholders, and more than a dozen more times in the call with analysts.

Editors’ note: RedBird Capital, a stakeholder in Paramount Skydance, is also an investor in Front Office Sports through RedBird IMI.

Three Former No. 1 Picks on Rookie Deals Are Shaking Up the NHL [[link removed]]

Sergei Belski-Imagn Images

A youth movement is quickly taking over the National Hockey League, as the last three No. 1 draft picks are each starring this season and reshaping the face of the sport.

The Blackhawks’ Connor Bedard [[link removed]], the No. 1 pick in 2023, is currently tied for second in the league in scoring with 25 points, while last year’s top pick, the Sharks’ Macklin Celebrini [[link removed]], is fourth with 24. Before a five-point outburst Sunday night by the Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon, the current league leader, the 20-year-old Bedard and 19-year-old Celebrini ranked first and second, respectively, marking the first pair of players in NHL history that young to lead in scoring this late in the season.

Not to be outdone, 18-year-old Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer [[link removed]], the No. 1 draft pick this past June, already has 11 points in 15 games and ranks 10th in the NHL in defenseman scoring.

It’s hardly a surprise that No. 1 picks in the NHL go on to stardom, as a decorated prior lineage at that spot includes future Hockey Hall of Fame–level talents such as Oilers superstar Connor McDavid, MacKinnon, the Capitals’ Alexander Ovechkin, and the Penguins’ Sidney Crosby. The latest crop of stars, however, is showing a particularly high level of precociousness.

The early stardom of the young trio positions the NHL well from a marketing perspective, as veteran stars such as Ovechkin and Crosby draw closer to retirement. All three young phenoms have also powered an extensive series of ticket, viewership, and merchandise sales boosts for their respective teams.

The recent exploits of Bedard and Celebrini have additionally put both players in strong contention [[link removed]] to make the Canadian team for the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

“It was great to watch them,” Team Canada GM Doug Armstrong said of Bedard and Celebrini after a preseason orientation camp. “They were both at the World Championships, Bedard last year, Celebrini this year. I think just getting them associated with this level of players, Crosby and MacKinnon were there for Celebrini this year, that’s the next generation.”

Salary Matters

Adding to the initial impact of Bedard, Celebrini, and Schaefer is the trio still playing on rookie-level contracts that are far below what their on-ice performance would represent in market value.

Bedard is in the final season of a three-year, $2.85 million base contract. Performance incentives, however, can add as much as $3.5 million annually to that haul, and his hot start this year puts him well in line to achieve many of them. He is eligible to become a restricted free agent in July, but there have been talks with the Blackhawks about a contract extension. Chicago could also return to the playoffs for the first time since 2020 as a rebuilding effort based around Bedard is taking hold.

Celebrini is in the second season of a three-year, $2.93 million base contract, but he, too, has performance bonuses that can add $3.5 million per year. Like Bedard, his scoring this year is well ahead of last year’s pace, and he could surpass his 2024–25 tally of 63 points by midseason.

Schaefer’s deal mirrors Celebrini’s in nearly all respects, as the NHL entry-level maximum did not change for this season.

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Conversation Starters Rob Gronkowski will sign a one-day contract to officially retire as a Patriot [[link removed]]. The three-time Super Bowl champion will sign his contract live Wednesday. Atlanta has been awarded the 17th NWSL franchise [[link removed]]. It will involve a league-record $165 million expansion fee. Unrivaled Sports just added Drew Brees’s Football ‘N’ America [[link removed]] to its portfolio. The NFL-backed pro flag football leagues for men and women are expected to launch after the 2028 Summer Olympics. Editors’ Picks What Happens Next With Guardians’ Contracts After Federal Charges? [[link removed]]by Ben Horney [[link removed]] and Alex Schiffer [[link removed]]The future is murky for Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz. [[link removed]] NBA Eyes October 2027 Start, 12 ‘Big’ Markets for European League [[link removed]]by Colin Salao [[link removed]]The start date would be similar to the NBA’s. Question of the Day

Do you support MLB limiting pitch-level prop bets?

YES [[link removed]] NO [[link removed]]

Monday’s result: 81% of respondents think prop bets should be illegal because of the higher risk of player abuse.

Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Show [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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