A Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher and two of the highest jockeys in horse racing have been allegedly linked to unlawful cockfighting in Puerto Rico by means of social media posts, in response to reporting from USA Right this moment.
The article, revealed Thursday, highlights social media posts promoting cockfighting tournaments that image three-time All-Star nearer Edwin Díaz in his Dodgers uniform and an article in El Nuevo Día, the most important circulating newspaper in Puerto Rico, quoting Díaz.
Brothers and jockeys Jose Ortiz and Irad Ortiz, who completed first and second, respectively, within the Kentucky Derby this month have been marketed as contributors in a cockfighting event in 2025, in response to the outlet.
Representatives for Díaz and the Ortiz brothers didn’t instantly reply to requests for touch upon Thursday. Diaz and the Ortiz brothers have been born in Puerto Rico the place cockfighting has been a longstanding cultural custom, an enormous trade and a supply of rigidity between the U.S. territory and the federal authorities.
In 2019, a federal regulation banning cockfighting took impact in Puerto Rico. Earlier than the regulation, the blood sport had been made unlawful in all 50 states, however not U.S. territories. Many Puerto Ricans noticed the ban as an assault on their tradition and vowed to defy the regulation.
Puerto Rico responded by passing a regulation saying that it’s authorized to host cockfights so long as folks don’t export or import the animals or any items or companies associated to cockfighting. The U.S. Supreme Courtroom in 2021 declined to listen to a problem to the federal regulation introduced by a gaggle that argued Congress exceeded its energy by making use of the ban to Puerto Rico.
Within the El Nuevo Día story, which revealed in March, Díaz is quoted speaking about cockfighting, saying it was a pastime he’d adopted since he was a baby. He was attending a event wherein his household entered 4 roosters, in response to the article.
“It’s authorized in Puerto Rico, thank God. In any other case, I wouldn’t be right here,” he stated in Spanish. “It’s one thing I’ve carried out since childhood, one thing my dad instilled in me.”
The Dodgers signed Díaz to a three-year, $69-million contract in December 2025. Final month, the workforce introduced that Díaz was having surgical procedure to take away “unfastened our bodies” in his proper elbow and can be out till the second half of the season.
A Fb submit by Membership Gallistico de Puerto Rico on Dec. 17, 2025, footage the Ortiz brothers and lists them as contributors in a cockfighting occasion. The submit, which is in Spanish, notes that the brothers excel in worldwide horse racing, but additionally have a ardour for cockfighting.
“Brothers Irad and José Luis Ortiz accepted the problem of taking part within the ‘Caribbean Grand Champion’ event with a single objective: to develop into undisputed champions,” the submit learn in Spanish.
Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming, which is charged with regulating horse racing, launched an investigation after receiving reviews that Irad Ortiz and Jose Ortiz have been taking part in a cockfighting occasion, Travers Manley, the senior vp of gaming and media relations for the group, wrote in an announcement to The Instances. It isn’t clear when the investigation particularly started.
“The investigation included the stewards assembly with Irad and Jose. Following the investigation, KHRG stewards elected to not take administrative motion in opposition to them,” Manley wrote.
