Inside The Padres

Former Padres Top Prospect, Cut After Gambling Scandal, Signs With Kansas City Monarchs

He's back in professional baseball.
Noah Camras|
Mar 23, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; San Diego Padres pitcher Jay Groome (55) throws against the Milwaukee Brewers in the first inning at American Family Fields of Phoenix. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images
Mar 23, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; San Diego Padres pitcher Jay Groome (55) throws against the Milwaukee Brewers in the first inning at American Family Fields of Phoenix. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

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San Diego PadresBoston Red Sox

Former San Diego Padres top prospect Jay Groome is back in professional baseball after signing with the Kansas City Monarchs of the American Association of Professional Baseball.

Groome, 27, last pitched for the Padres organization in 2024 at Triple-A El Paso. In June 2024, he was suspended for one year for violating MLB's gambling policy. His betting activity predated his Padres tenure, as the bets were reportedly placed from July 2020 through July 2021, when he was a member of the Boston Red Sox organization.

"In March 2024, MLB learned from a legal sports betting operator that it had identified past baseball betting activity from accounts connected to multiple Major and Minor League players," MLB said in a statement at the time of the suspension. "MLB obtained data from that operator and other sportsbooks, including authentication data for bets. None of these players played in any game on which they placed a bet. Further, all of the players denied that they had any inside information relevant to the bets or that any of the baseball games they bet on were compromised or manipulated, and the betting data does not suggest that any outcomes in the baseball games on which they placed bets were compromised, influenced, or manipulated in any way. None of the players are appealing their discipline."

After serving his year-long suspension, Groome was reinstated and subsequently non-tendered by the Padres, making him a free agent. He played in the Puerto Rican Winter League and signed with the Caliente de Durango of the Mexican League last month, and is now getting an opportunity in another professional league, this one in the States.

Jay Groome career

Groome was initially drafted by the Red Sox in the first round of the 2016 MLB Draft. He was a top-10 prospect in the organization every year from 2017-21, ranking as high as No. 2 in 2018, per MLB Pipeline.

In August 2022, Groome — who was in Triple-A at the time — was traded to the Padres in the blockbuster deal that sent Eric Hosmer, Max Ferguson, Corey Rosier and cash to Boston. Groome was instantly assigned to Triple-A, where he'd spend his entire Padres tenure. He was ranked as the Padres' No. 9 prospect in 2023.

Overall, across parts of three seasons at Triple-A El Paso, Groome made 43 starts, accruing a 6.97 ERA over 191 innings pitched. Most of that work came in 2023, when he went 4-10 with an 8.55 ERA across 30 starts.

Groome is now back in the States playing baseball, where he'll hope to pitch well enough to earn a spot back in MLB. At just 27 years old — and with the gambling scandal behind him — he has plenty of time to get back to playing at the highest level, and potentially make his MLB debut in the coming years.

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Noah Camras
NOAH CAMRAS

Noah Camras graduated from the University of Southern California in 2022 with a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in sports media studies. He was born and raised in Los Angeles and has extensively covered Southern California sports in his career. Noah is the publisher of Padres on SI after contributing as a writer and editor over the last three years.

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