A significant twist has emerged in the ongoing gambling investigation that has rocked both the Cleveland Guardians and Major League Baseball.
It comes after two Guardians pitchers, closer Emmanuel Clase and starter Luis Ortiz became part of an investigation by the MLB after a betting reliability firm flagged multiple suspicious bets in June of this year.
And now it has been confirmed that both Clase and Ortiz have been indicted in relation to a scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown during games.
Ortiz was arrested on Sunday in Boston, while Clase has not yet been arrested, according to reports.
The indictment says the pitchers “agreed in advance with their co-conspirators on specific pitches that they would throw in MLB games,” and the co-conspirators “then used that information to place hundreds of fraudulent bets on those pitches.”
Clase agreed to begin rigging prop bets around May 2023, and “at times received bribes and kickbacks.” Ortiz joined the scheme in June of this year, according to the 23-page indictment.
Prosecutors allege that Luis Ortiz was paid $5,000 for throwing an intentional ball on June 15 and Emmanuel Clase was given $5,000 for facilitating it.
According to the indictment, they repeated the same offense on June 27. The payment for each on that pitch was $7,000 apiece.
They are both facing charges of wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery and money laundering conspiracy.
If convicted on all charges, both Clase and Ortiz could face up to 65 years in prison, according to the Eastern District of New York.
The MLB released a statement that was sent to ESPN shortly after the news broke, saying: “MLB contacted federal law enforcement at the outset of its investigation and has fully cooperated throughout the process. We are aware of the indictment and today’s arrest, and our investigation is ongoing.”
Both Clase and Ortiz were initially placed on non-disciplinary paid leave as part of MLB’s gambling investigation, with Clase coming off a superb year, in which he pitched to a microscopic 0.61 ERA in 74 1/3 innings during the 2024 season.
It comes after a similar yet different betting scandal has rocked the NBA to its core, with several NBA coaches and players arrested and charged recently over two separate gambling operations that leaked inside information about NBA athletes and rigged poker games backed by Mafia families.
Former Cleveland Cavaliers, along with current Miami Heat player Terry Rozier, was arrested for leaking private information about NBA players to help with sports betting.
