Cleveland 's Luis Ortiz to appear in court over allegations he took bribes to rig pitches

BOSTON -- Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz is owed successful tribunal Monday connected charges accusing him and teammate Emmanuel Clase of taking bribes to assistance bettors successful their autochthonal Dominican Republic triumph prop bets placed connected pitches they threw.

According to the indictment against the 2 unsealed Sunday, the highly paid hurlers took respective 1000 dollars successful payoffs to assistance 2 unnamed gamblers successful their location state triumph astatine slightest $460,000 connected bets placed connected the velocity and result of definite pitches, including immoderate that landed successful the dirt.

Clase, who was the Guardians’ closer, and Ortiz, a starter, person been connected nondisciplinary paid leave since July, erstwhile MLB started investigating what it said was unusually precocious in-game betting enactment erstwhile the 2 pitched. Some of the games successful question were successful April, May and June.

Ortiz, 26, was arrested Sunday by the FBI astatine Boston Logan International Airport. He is expected to look successful national tribunal successful Boston connected Monday. Clase, 27, is believed to beryllium extracurricular the U.S., according to a instrumentality enforcement authoritative acquainted with the matter. The authoritative was not authorized to talk publically astir the lawsuit and did truthful connected information of anonymity.

Ortiz and Clase “betrayed America’s pastime,” U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said. “Integrity, honesty and just play are portion of the DNA of nonrecreational sports. When corruption infiltrates the sport, it brings disgrace not lone to the participants but damages the nationalist spot successful an instauration that is captious and beloved to each of us.”

Ortiz’s lawyer, Chris Georgalis, said successful a connection that his lawsuit was guiltless and “has never, and would never, improperly power a crippled — not for anyone and not for anything.”

Georgalis said Ortiz’s defence squad antecedently documented for prosecutors that the payments and wealth transfers betwixt him and individuals successful the Dominican Republic were for ineligible activities.

MLB said it contacted national instrumentality enforcement erstwhile it began investigating antithetic betting enactment and has afloat cooperated with authorities. “We are alert of the indictment and today’s arrest, and our probe is ongoing,” a league connection said.

In a statement, the Guardians said: “We are alert of the caller instrumentality enforcement action. We volition proceed to afloat cooperate with some instrumentality enforcement and Major League Baseball arsenic their investigations continue.”

Clase and Ortiz are each charged with ligament fraud conspiracy, honorable services ligament fraud conspiracy, wealth laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to power sporting contests by bribery. The apical charges transportation a imaginable punishment of up to 20 years successful prison.

In 1 illustration cited successful the indictment, Clase allegedly invited a bettor to a crippled against the Boston Red Sox successful April and spoke with him by telephone conscionable earlier taking the mound. Four minutes later, the indictment said, the bettor and his associates won $11,000 connected a wager that Clase would flip a definite transportation slower than 97.95 mph (157.63 kph).

Clase, a three-time All-Star and two-time American League Reliever of the Year, had a $4.5 cardinal wage successful 2025, the 4th play of a $20 million, five-year contract. The three-time AL prevention person began providing the bettors with accusation astir his pitches successful 2023 but didn’t inquire for payoffs until this year, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Ortiz, who had a $782,600 wage this year, got successful connected the strategy successful June and is accused of rigging pitches successful games against the Seattle Mariners and the St. Louis Cardinals.

The charges are the latest bombshell developments successful a national crackdown connected betting successful nonrecreational sports.

Last month, much than 30 people, including salient hoops figures specified arsenic Portland Trail Blazers caput manager and Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat defender Terry Rozier, were arrested successful a gambling expanse that rocked the NBA.