Earlier this year, 14 Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) players admitted to participating in online gambling—an activity that remains illegal in Japan. This week four players from the Saitama Seibu Lions were referred to the prosecutor’s office by the Saitama Prefectural Police following an investigation into their involvement in online gambling.
The players—outfielder/infielder Shinya Hasegawa, infielder Ryosuke Kodama, catcher Sena Tsuge, and infielder/outfielder Shuta Tonosaki—have reportedly agreed to pay fines imposed by the Seibu Lions as disciplinary action. All players have self-reported the gambling.
Their current season statistics are as follows:
- Shuta Tonosaki: .226/.313/.300 with 2 home runs
- Sena Tsuge: .213/.280/.333 with 1 home run
- Ryosuke Kodama: .171/.244/.220
- Shinya Hasegawa: .238/.299/.367 with 5 home runs
At this time, there is no evidence suggesting the players were involved in sports betting. However, any form of gambling remains illegal in Japan and has increasingly become a source of controversy for NPB and its players. In total, 16 players in NPB have admitted to involvement in illegal gambling after the league called for players to self-report.
The Japanese government has been cracking down on gambling as its prevalence continues to rise. This week, a new law was passed banning the establishment of new online gambling websites, as well as advertisements and social media promotions related to gambling. The move is aimed at addressing the growing concern over gambling addiction nationwide.
WBN Japan: https://worldbaseball.com/league/japan/
