MLB pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz charged with taking bribes to rig pitches for bettors

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

Updated 1:37 PM CST, November 9, 2025
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NEW YORK (AP) — Two Major League Baseball pitchers were indicted Sunday on charges they took bribes to give sports bettors advance notice of the types of pitches they’d throw and intentionally tossed balls instead of strikes to ensure successful bets.

Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, both of whom pitched for the Cleveland Guardians, have been on non-disciplinary paid leave since July while Major League Baseball investigated unusually high in-game betting activity when they pitched.

Clase, 27, and Ortiz, 26, were both charged with wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery and money laundering conspiracy. The top charges carry a potential punishment of up to 20 years in prison in the event of a conviction.

Ortiz was arrested by the FBI on Sunday morning at Boston Logan International Airport. He is expected to appear in federal court in Boston on Monday.



Read more: https://apnews.com/article/mlb-baseball-gambling-ortiz-clase-a6db1ff46523e2ffa16d84ca427cf7c1

[FakeNoose]

1. Collusion is never a good thing

Even the suggestion or the possibility of collusion should be a firing offense.

[Justice Brandeis]

2. The precedent set from the 1919 Black Sox scandal

says that you need not get a guilty conviction in criminal court to bar players from baseball for throwing games.

[paleotn]

5. As it should be.

Keep the game clean at all costs.

[twodogsbarking]

3. They rigged it and bet on it big time and thought nobody would notice? Well either I am wrong or ?

[LudwigPastorius]

4. How the heck would that work?

Would there be an agreement beforehand that "the fourth pitch of the third batter I face will be a ball", or were they giving in-game signs of their next pitch visible on TV?

[GJGCA]

8. Micro-betting is a thing...

... AI result:

Micro betting is a form of wagering that allows bettors to place rapid, real-time bets on specific moments during a game. Unlike traditional betting, which focuses on overall outcomes, micro-betting enables fans to engage with every play, shot, or pitch.

[LudwigPastorius]

9. Yes, but how would the pitchers indicate to the bettors what pitch they were about to throw?

[GJGCA]

11. A wink or a nod ..

...to someone with a Smartwatch is the variant I've read.

Or just directly from a Smartwatch.

[LudwigPastorius]

13. _

[RandySF]

6. Why?

What was worth throwing away their careers and reputations.

[Diamond_Dog]

7. They threw away their careers for this.

Sad and stupid.

[Auggie]

12. Hard to believe. Clase blew his chance at enormous wealth.

He would gave been a free agent in 2027 at the age of 29 and could have named his own price. $15 - $18 million a year?

He's earned about $12 million in his career with Cleveland.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/claseem01.shtml

[Diamond_Dog]

14. I will never understand it.

[Wiz Imp]

16. Partially True. Closers in general don't get big money contracts for as long of terms as starting pitchers

Last edited Sun Nov 9, 2025, 07:01 PM - Edit history (1)

and position players.

The biggest contract ever signed by a closer is Edwin Díaz'$102 million, five-year deal with the New York Mets, signed in November 2022. Diaz was 28 at the time.

https://fansided.com/posts/richest-relief-pitcher-contracts-ever-given-out-in-mlb-history-01hhjjezw66b
Richest relief pitcher contracts ever given out in MLB history
Player name Contract
Edwin Diaz $102 million
Aroldis Chapman$86 million
Kenley Jansen $80 million
Mark Melancon $62 million

https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2025/05/11/highest-paid-mlb-relief-pitchers-2025/82772196007/
Who are the highest-paid MLB relief pitchers in 2025?
(In present-day value calculated by MLB)

Josh Hader, Astros: $19,000,000
Edwin Diaz, Mets: $18,331,014
Raisel Iglesias, Braves: $16,000,000
Ryan Pressly, Cubs: $14,100,000
Kirby Yates, Dodgers: $13,000,000
Tanner Scott, Dodgers: $ 12,141,009
Taylor Rogers, Reds: $12,000,000
Rafael Montero, Astros: $11,500,000
A.J. Minter, Mets: $11,000,000
Aroldis Chapman, Red Sox: $10,750,000

[Polybius]

17. Mariano Rivera deserved a lot more

My favorite closer by a mile.

[Wiz Imp]

18. Rivera apparently earned a total of approximately $170 million over 18 seasons

His highest annual salary was $15 million (2008 thru 2012). In 2012, 29 players earned a higher salary than Rivera.

[Polybius]

19. He was so good, he deserved more

At least can can say that no one else but him was elected to the HOF unanimously.

[Auggie]

23. Partially true? Dead-on-balls accurate ...

Clase had been one of the best, most consistent relievers in baseball. Mets, Dodgers, Yankees, et al would have willingly signed him to the numbers I quoted.

[Wiz Imp]

30. Aren't you just the smartest guy in the world?

I bow to your intelligence.

In reality, his current contract runs through the 2026 season, and there are $10 million team options for both 2027 & 2028. And many closers have notoriously short terms of peak value" So, no, he was in no position to get an $18 million a year contract any time soon.

You were about as "Dead-on-balls accurate" as Trump is when talking about anything involving numbers.

[LisaM]

20. Maybe it's not just money.

Maybe their families are being threatened. Who knows?

I think it's really important to get legalized gambling out of sports. Prop betting just makes it worse.

[Ponietz]

10. It's looking like professional sports, generally, are infested with gambling collusion

Betting for money was illegal for so long for good reason. Along comes the internet and anything goes. I watch soccer and the influx of dirty Saudi oil money has poisoned the game. Officials are most suspect because they make little compared to the players.

[Deminpenn]

15. Same thing the NBA player was arrested

for doing.

[LisaM]

21. It doesn't help that the announcers freaking dissect every pitch.

Then they gabble about exit velocity and how many fouls in a row and blather one seemingly useless stat after another to the point where it doesn't even seem that they are following the game as a whole. And I suppose there are prop bettors hanging on every stat.

I grew up listening to baseball in the radio and they would just say things like "a low fastball in the dirt" and that was just perfect.

[FakeNoose]

25. It's sometimes tedioius listening to the announcers I will admit

... but I don't think that had anything to do with these professional players who threw away their careers for a few bucks.

They're both going to be banned from baseball, is my guess. That's what happened to Pete Rose (and others), who never got into the Hall of Fame where he should have ended up. These young men were stupid and misguided....

I don't know maybe there's something I'm missing here? Why didn't they have more regard for their future careers?

[MontanaMama]

22. This beaks my heart.

Damn it I’m sad about this.

[Wonder Why]

24. If The Thing and his clowns and some SROTUS memers do, why not pitchers?

We have become a country full of billionaire bribe offerers and wannabe billionaire bribe takers.

Soon, police forces and judges all over will become like it was during Prohibition. Everyone on the take or offering it.

I don't take bribes unless they are made of dark chocolate!

[FakeNoose]

27. This is so true! The sport of baseball needs to remain clean of the possibility of gambling

There can't be any chance of collusion, and that's why these players were so short-sighted by getting involved.

I'm not saying they are guilty, because I really hope they aren't. But the problem with baseball is that there can't be any possibility of collusion. All the players know this. Anyone who ignores the safeguards is throwing away their career. These guys knew it and they did it anyway. Was is worth the risk? I doubt it. Just ask Pete Rose.

[PJMcK]

26. Gambling is for suckers (n/t)

[RVN VET71]

28. SCOTUS opened the gates of corruption

The resultant ruination of sports by "gambling interests" was inevitable. Shit, FANDUEL and a host of other "companies" aren't in the business of keeping sports honest.

As a result all the big leagues are going to rot and die. Baseball, Basketball (even the WNBA, maybe especially WNBA), the NFL. None is immune.

A damned shame; and I lay it all on SCOTUS. It made it all possible -- made it all probable.

And it upsets me. I just don't watch it anymore, any of it, because I don't believe it anymore.

[wolfie001]

29. Already making $ each of us can only dream of

No sympathy. Pathetic. The 1919 scandal the players were paid dirt salaries. These guys are making hand-over-fist even when they're run-of-the-mill talents. Crazy stupid.