Baseball Fraud Trial: Clase and Ortiz Face Jury

Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz entered federal court in Brooklyn on Monday to face a jury on multiple fraud charges.

The former Cleveland Guardians pitchers are accused of accepting bribes from two gamblers in the Dominican Republic. Prosecutors allege the scheme involved sharing specific information about pitch types and outcomes to win at least $460,000 on in-game prop bets.

Both men have pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, and conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery. They remain on nondisciplinary leave from the Guardians without pay during the proceedings.

According to the indictment, Clase began providing the bettors with pitch data in 2023. He recruited Ortiz into the arrangement in 2025. Ortiz’s legal team attempted to secure a separate trial but was unsuccessful. The defense plans to argue that the pitchers were simply adjusting their pitch placement strategically to deceive batters rather than colluding with outside parties.

Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto presided over a pretrial conference on Friday. She expressed a goal of completing jury selection quickly to allow for shorter opening statements that afternoon. The trial is expected to last approximately one month. Several professional baseball players, including catchers and executives, are scheduled to testify.

Clase, 28, is a three-time All-Star and two-time American League Reliever of the Year. He completed his fourth season of a five-year, $20 million contract before the charges became public in November 2025. Ortiz, 27, earned $782,600 as a starter for the Guardians during the 2025 season.

On Friday, Judge Matsumoto ruled that prosecutors could not present evidence showing Clase owed $500,000 in U.S. taxes. The judge determined the government missed the deadline to disclose that financial information to the defense. A prosecutor had argued the evidence was needed to counter the defense’s claim that Clase’s large foreign bank accounts removed his financial motive to take bribes. Major League Baseball and the Guardians stated they have fully cooperated with federal law enforcement since the investigation into unusual betting activity began.