CLEVELAND, Ohio — Talking to myself about Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz being indicted on sports gambling and other charges. The representatives for both players have denied the charges in the federal indictment.
QUESTION: Why would these guys do it?
ANSWER: Let’s look at economics: Ortiz had a $782,000 salary for 2025. He’s a young pitcher in terms of MLB experience and is not close to free agency. He probably would be paid about $800,000 in 2026. He’s not yet eligible for arbitration, which raised the salaries of many players dramatically.
Q: And Clase?
A: He was paid $4.5 million in 2025. His 2026 salary is $6 million. He has team options for $10 million annually in 2027 and 2028. Given the fact he’s a three-time All-Star and twice won the Mariano Rivera Award as MLB’s top reliever, the Guardians would have been happy to pick up those options. In other words, his conduct (according to investigations) has put about $26 million at risk.
Q: How much do investigators say the pitchers made in the gambling schemes?
A: It’s unclear. But according to the indictment, the bettors made about $450,000. The pitchers? Much less. There are examples of the pitchers receiving payments between $5,000 and $10,000 in the indictment.
Q: Back to the original question, why would these guys do it?
A: Clase signed his contract extension with the Guardians late in 2022 spring training. I was with a small group of reporters in Goodyear for the press conference. Clase was surrounded by about 10 family members and friends.
Those close to Clase were so excited. He had pitched only 93 MLB innings. He was set to be paid $600,000. The Guardians gave him what amounted to a seven-year contract, counting various options. That $600,000 salary in 2022 became $3.5 million including his new signing bonus. It was generational-changing wealth for the young man from the Dominican Republic and his family.
Q: How bad is this?
A: If even half of what the indictment says is true, it’s far worse than I expected when both pitchers were placed on paid leave in July. Clase and Ortiz are facing various charges such as money laundering, wire fraud conspiracy and bribery. The charges came from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. That’s also the same place that recently charged Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones with basketball gambling improprieties. It makes me wonder if the two investigations had some common people involved – especially the bettors.
Illustration by Ted Crow for Crowquill. Ted Crow
Q: Whose idea was this?
A: The most disturbing part is how various text messages show Clase setting up the bets, recruiting Ortiz and even having the bettors at his house. He talked to gamblers before games via text – and even during games – according to authorities.
Q: When did it start?
A: On May 19, 2023, Cleveland was playing the Mets. Clase told bettors he’d throw a pitch faster than 94 mph. Prosecutors claim the bettors won $27,000 on that pitch. A few weeks later, bettors won $38,000 when Clase agreed to throw a pitch slower than 95 mph. He bounced a breaking ball in front of the plate.
Q: You can bet on the speed of pitches?
A: I didn’t know that until the indictment. The original reports were bets on if the first pitch to a batter in a certain inning would be a ball or strike. Turns out, you can bet on a parlay. That is a combination bet. So Clase would agree to throw a pitch slower than 94 mph. Clase often threw 100 mph fastballs. Those parlay bets paid off at a higher rate than a single bet on ball/strike, etc. All this is known as micro-prop bets.
Q: What about the text messages?
A: According to the indictment: “As part of the scheme, the defendant EMMANUEL CLASE DE LA CRUZ used his cellular telephone in the middle of MLB games involving the Cleveland Guardians – contrary to MLB rules – to coordinate with Bettor-1. For example, on or about May 17, 2025, the Cleveland Guardians played an MLB game against the Cincinnati Reds. The game began at approximately 6:40 p.m. At approximately 8:24 p.m., CLASE sent a text message to Bettor-l asking if Bettor-l was ” ready.” Bettor-1 responded, “of course.” Approximately ten minutes later, Bettor-1, Bettor-2, and several other Bettors won approximately $10,000 on Betting Platform-2 by placing multiple bets that a pitch thrown by CLASE would both be a Ball/HBP and would be slower than 97.95 mph.”
Q: That means Clase texted the gamblers during the game?
A: That’s how the indictment reads, and it happened more than once.
Q: Any other examples?
A: Here’s another from the indictment: “On or about April 25, 2025, Bettor-1 traveled to Ohio and visited CLASE at his residence. CLASE obtained tickets for Bettor-1 to attend the Cleveland Guardians’ MLB game the following day, April 26, 2025, against the Boston Red Sox. The game began at approximately 1:10 p.m. At approximately 3:16 p.m., in the middle of the game, CLASE sent a text message initiating a conversation with Bettor-1. A few seconds later, CLASE and Bettor-1 had a phone call that lasted approximately two minutes. Four minutes later, Bettor-1 and several of the Bettors won approximately $11,000 on Betting Platform-2 by wagering that a pitch thrown by CLASE would be slower than 97.95 mph. After the game on April 26, 2025, Bettor-1 visited CLASE at his residence.”
Q: Clase had gamblers at his house?
A: There’s more, according to the indictment: “CLASE obtained tickets for Bettor-1 to attend an MLB game on May 11, 2025. The same day, after receiving advance information from CLASE, Bettor-1, Bettor-2, and several of the Bettors won approximately $11,000 on Betting Platform-2 by wagering that a pitch thrown by CLASE would be a Ball/HBP. After the game on May 11, 2025, Bettor-1 again visited CLASE at his residence.”
Q: Who are these “Bettors?”
A: They have ties to the Dominican Republic, the home country of Clase and Ortiz. When the pitchers were paid, the money often was wired to someone in the Dominican Republic.
Q: How did it work?
A: According to the indictment, on one occasion, Clase allegedly had the money sent to a third party to be used “for repairs at the country house.” In another, money was being sent to someone in the Dominican Republic for Ortiz. The bettor told Ortiz, “They’re going to ask him (the third party) what the payment is for. Tell him the payment is for a horse. Got that?” Ortiz said: “OK, perfect.”
Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz arrives for his arraignment at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.Getty Images
Q: How did Ortiz get involved?
A: According to the indictment: “In or around June 2025, the defendant LUIS LEANDRO ORTIZ RIBERA joined the criminal scheme with the defendant EMMANUEL CLASE DE LA CRUZ and the Bettors. ORTIZ agreed to throw balls (instead of strikes) on certain pitches in exchange for bribes or kickbacks. CLASE coordinated between ORTIZ and Bettor-1.”
Q: Clase set up the whole thing?
A: According to the indictment, Clase served as a middleman on some of these bets. On June 15, 2025, Clase and Ortiz each received $5,000 for throwing a ball at the set point in the game. According to authorities, the bettors made $26,000. Some of the money was funneled through the Dominican Republic.
Q: Did Clase try to recruit anyone else on the Guardians for his scheme?
A: Not that is known. Nothing in the indictment about that. MLB said no other members of the Guardians are involved in the investigation.
Q: Why was Ortiz placed on paid leave before Clase?
A: MLB sent Ortiz to the sidelines on July 3, Clase on July 28. I find that odd because Clase was far deeper into the scheme – according to the indictment.
Q: How bad is it to just throw ball 1 to a hitter?
A: That’s how the bettors probably sold the scheme to Clase and Ortiz. The big line fixers use in these situations is “no one gets hurt … it’s one pitch, has nothing to do with the outcome of a game.”
The federal indictment against Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase includes this photo that shows a pitch thrown in the dirt well in front of home plate. Federal prosecutors say the pitcher deliberately threw the pitch so bettors would make money on wagers.Federal indictment
Q: Well, does it?
A: ESPN came up with some stats about the difference between a first pitch strike and a first pitch ball. In 2025, the hitters with a ball-1 count batted .263 with a .375 on-base percentage. Hitters with a strike-1 count batted .217 with a .255 on-base percentage. Yes, it matters.
Q: What did the Guardians know about this and when did they know it?
A: I don’t have those answers. The organization seemed surprised when it hit.
Q: What’s going to happen to the pitchers?
A: Both had entered “not guilty” pleas to the various charges. MLB could suspend them without pay, much like the NBA did recently in their gambling case. Or MLB can wait for the legal process to conclude. If even some of the stuff in the indictment is true, the pitchers should be suspended for life from baseball.
Q: So the guys are getting paid?
A: At least they were for the 2025 season. I believe that was a deal between MLB and the players union. But for 2026, no word yet of what is coming.
Q: Can you still make these kind of micro-prop bets?
A: This is the shocking part: Yes. MLB and the gambling partners now limit the bets to $200 each and no parlay bets. That’s not enough. There are lots of betting venues, and someone could spread $200 microbets at various outlets. MLB should demand these types of bets cease, period. Limiting the bets is not enough.
You can read the indictment here. It’s worth checking out the details from the investigators.
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