iStockphoto
Some suspicious activity at the sportsbooks over the weekend led to one notable SEC team being removed from the book. Gamblers in Ohio are, for the time, unable to place bets on the Alabama baseball squad.
David Payne Purdum of ESPN first broke the news, though it’s still not completely clear what caused the stoppage.
Alabama played No. 1 LSU over the weekend, getting swept in a three-game series. The first game of that set is what led to the Crimson Tide being pulled.
The Tigers entered as -245 money line favorites in Friday’s game, and they led 8-1 through seven innings before holding off a late Alabama rally. LSU would win, 8-6.
Here’s what Purdum wrote in his most recent column.
Ohio gambling regulators on Monday instructed the state’s licensed sportsbooks to halt betting on college baseball games involving Alabama after suspicious wagering activity was detected on the Crimson Tide’s game against top-ranked LSU on Friday.
The emergency order was in response to a report from an independent integrity monitor. On Friday, U.S. Integrity, a Las Vegas-based firm that monitors the betting markets, issued an alert to its sportsbook clients regarding “suspicious wagering activity” involving the Alabama-LSU game.
The report is a bit vague, though it likely has something to do with a large amount of money or a staggering number of bets being placed on one side of the action. Whatever the case, it raised eyebrows.
Fans were quick to comment on the removal of Alabama baseball from the sportsbooks in Ohio. Here’s what they were saying.
Some took immediate shots at the Crimson Tide, whose sports programs and alum have been in hot water of late.
The Alabama basketball team has had all kinds of issues this year, while former football player Jameson Williams was recently suspended for a gambling incident of his own.
Wrong place wrong time
— vinny🆓 (@conway__vinny) May 2, 2023
Others, though, took a more reasonable approach.
Many in the comments section noted that the Crimson Tide scratched their starting pitcher last minute, which could’ve led to more money being thrown at LSU before first pitch.
The Alabama starting pitcher got scratched last minute before his start from a sore back. Some inside people knew that and hammered LSU. Books obviously didn’t know about the change so they couldn’t adjust the odds accordingly to draw action on both sides.
— college baseball (@ncaabaseball7) May 2, 2023
It will be interesting to see if the investigation into the suspicious activity turns anything up.
**UPDATE**
Purdum has updated the situation with the Alabama baseball team, saying that the suspicious activity occurred at the Reds’ Great American Ballpark.
The alleged suspicious wagering activity on Friday’s Alabama-LSU baseball game occurred at the sportsbook located at Great American Ballpark, according to a spokesperson for the Ohio Casino Control Commission. https://t.co/crL0Qr7g1m
— David Payne Purdum (@DavidPurdum) May 2, 2023
The athletic department is reportedly aware of the situation.