Indicted: Cleveland Guardians Pitchers Charged in Pitch-Rigging Conspiracy

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NEW YORK, NY — Major League Baseball’s ongoing gambling crisis escalated dramatically today as two Cleveland Guardians pitchers, All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase and starter Luis Ortiz, were indicted by federal prosecutors in New York on charges stemming from an alleged conspiracy to rig individual pitches during MLB games.

The 23-page indictment, unsealed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, alleges the players accepted bribes and kickbacks from corrupt bettors to intentionally manipulate the outcome of specific pitches, a scheme designed to profit from the explosive growth of in-game “prop” betting.

The Allegations: Rigging the Micro-Bet

The heart of the federal charges focuses on a level of athletic corruption rarely seen in modern professional sports: fixing plays on a micro-level. Prosecutors accuse the two Dominican-born pitchers of conspiring with bettors to pre-determine the outcome of single pitches, such as whether a pitch would be a ball or a strike, or what its velocity would be.

Emmanuel Clase, a dominant closer and three-time All-Star, is alleged to have started coordinating with bettors as early as May 2023. His rigged pitches reportedly allowed co-conspirators to win hundreds of thousands of dollars, often by wagering on his pitch speed or whether his first pitch of an at-bat would be a ball.
Luis Ortiz allegedly joined the scheme in June 2025. The indictment outlines specific instances where Ortiz was paid $5,000 to $7,000 for throwing an intentional ball on a pre-arranged pitch in games against the Seattle Mariners and the St. Louis Cardinals. Clase is accused of receiving payments for facilitating these rigged pitches.

The indictment charges both players with multiple felony counts, including 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 players face up to 65 years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Investigation and Fallout

The federal charges follow months of investigation by Major League Baseball (MLB), which initially placed both players on non-disciplinary paid leave in July 2025 after a betting-integrity firm flagged unusually high wagering activity on specific, easily manipulated outcomes during games pitched by Ortiz.

Arrests: Ortiz was arrested by the FBI in Boston today. Clase has not yet been taken into custody.
Official Response: The Guardians released a statement confirming their awareness of the legal action and reiterating their commitment to fully cooperating with both federal law enforcement and MLB. The league, which referred the matter to the Department of Justice at the outset of its internal probe, stated its investigation is ongoing.
A Growing Crisis: This development is the latest, and perhaps most damaging, in a series of gambling-related scandals that have hit U.S. professional sports since the 2018 Supreme Court ruling opened the floodgates to legalized sports betting. The charges underscore the vulnerability of prop bets and micro-bets, which allow single players to significantly influence wagering outcomes without having to tank an entire game.

The indictment of the two Guardians pitchers represents a chilling reminder of the threat that corruption, fueled by the multi-billion-dollar sports gambling industry, poses to the integrity of America’s pastime.