One of the biggest baseball stories of the decade emerged on Sunday. That is when we found out on Sunday that Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase of Rio San Juan, Dominican Republic, and Luis Ortiz of San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic were allegedly taking bribes from sports bettors according to Michael Sisak of the Associated Press. Clase and Ortiz (shown above in the Pittsburgh Pirates’s minor league system) have been charged with throwing balls into the dirt intentionally, and reducing the velocity of pitches to help bettors of their native country from the Dominican Republic.
Clase’s alleged actions began during the 2023 Major League Baseball season. Ortiz’s alleged actions began during the 2025 MLB season for the first time with June as the starting month. Now, we are learning from Matthew Graham of Sports Illustrated, that Clase received $7,000 for every intentional ball thrown.
Clase had not pitched for the Guardians since July 26 and Ortiz had not pitched since June 27. If convicted, Clase and Ortiz could spend 20 years in prison according to Sisak.
The incidents regarding Clase and Ortiz come one week after NBA coach Chauncey Billups and NBA player Terry Rozier were allegedly arrested for participating in illegal gambling. There is a belief that the FBI could just be getting started with their investigations and arrests.
Clase is the Guardians’s all-time leader in saves with 181. This past season, he had a record of five wins and three losses, 24 saves, with an earned run average of 3.23. This is not the first time Clase has been disciplined. He missed the 2020 season because of a PED suspension. Meanwhile, Ortiz hd a record of four wins and nine losses with an earned run average of 4.36 this past season.
