Trial of Guardians Pitchers Emmanuel Clase, Luis Ortiz to Begin Today

• Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz face charges for alleged roles in a sports betting and money laundering conspiracy
• Their trial begins today in Brooklyn federal court
• Clase and Ortiz are the first professional athletes in U.S. sports to go to trial for a sports betting scandal
  

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The trial of Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz is set to begin today in Brooklyn federal court, the first trial of U.S. athletes for their alleged roles in a sports betting and money laundering conspiracy.

Clase and his former teammate Ortiz will appear at trial to face charges relating to wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to influence sports contests by bribery for allegedly agreeing to inform co-conspirators on specific pitches they would throw in MLB games.

If convicted, according to the Department of Justice each defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment on the wire fraud conspiracy count, 20 years’ imprisonment on the honest services wire fraud conspiracy count, five years’ imprisonment on the conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery count, and 20 years’ imprisonment on the money laundering conspiracy count.

Prosecutors Point to 18 Pitches

Jury selection will begin today. Opening comments will either begin today or sometime this week, depending on how long the jury selection takes, according to a court officials.

In September, prosecutors identified 18 specific pitches Clase threw from 2023 to 2025 they will argue were part of the sports betting and money laundering conspiracy. The 18 pitches were thrown between May 19, 2023, to May 28, 2025, with one such pitch being thrown by Clase in game 1 of the ALDS against the Detroit Tigers.

According to the indictment for both players, Clase and Ortiz allegedly agreed in advance with their co-conspirators on specific pitches they would throw in MLB games. The co-conspirators used this information to place hundreds of fraudulent bets on those pitches.

Federal prosecutors will argue the following 18 pitches were thrown by Clase with advance knowledge provided to co-conspirators:

Hundreds of Fraudulent Bets Placed

Beginning around May 2023, Clase allegedly agreed with corrupt sports bettors to rig prop bets on particular pitches he threw. Co-conspirators wagered on speed and type of Clase’s pitches, based on what information the pitcher told them prior to a game. He would often throw the rigged pitches on the first pitch of an at-bat.

To ensure pitches were called balls, Clase often threw them into the dirt. Co-conspirators bet and won thousands of dollars at online sportsbooks with this information.

Clase allegedly received bribes and kickbacks from bettors in exchange for the information. In total, Clase won his co-conspirators at least $400,000 in fraudulent winnings.

In or around June 2025, Ortiz allegedly joined the scheme. Bettors agreed to pay him a $7,000 bribe for throwing a rigged pitch and also paid Clase $7,000 for arranging the rigged pitch. Before a game on June 27, 2025, Clase withdrew $50,000 and provided $15,000 to a co-conspirator who used money to bet on Ortiz’s rigged pitch.

In total, by rigging pitches, Ortiz won his co-conspirators at least $60,000.

First Sports Betting Scandal Trial

Most athletes have chosen to either plead guilty or accept deals rather than go to trial. Just three months after former NBA guard Malik Beasley pled not guilty for his alleged role in a sports betting scandal, the nine-year veteran announced he would change his plea to guilty in December.

According to U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York, Beasley will change his plea to guilty during a hearing on Dec. 9, 2026, at 2:30 p.m. Beasley faces wire fraud conspiracy, bribery in sporting contests, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy charges.

Beasley and co-defendant Paolo Zamorano were indicted in July and face illegal sports betting charges after Beasley allegedly manipulated game performances during his time with the Milwaukee Bucks in the 2023-2024 NBA season in exchange for bribes.

Additionally, Jontay Porter, a former center for the Toronto Raptors pled guilty in July 2024 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in a sports betting scandal.

News of Porter’s role in the sports betting scandal broke in April 2024 when the NBA announced its decision to ban him from the league. An NBA investigation found the backup forward/center provided a sports bettor with confidential information, limited his participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and bet on several NBA games.

Porter was found to have bet against the Raptors in a parlay while he traveled, but did not play, with the team earlier this year.

Most concerning, however, was news that broke in June 2024 that Porter faked at least two injuries so he could leave games early. He informed the four defendants that he owed large gambling debts to about his plan so they could place several large “under” bets on his performance.

According to the findings of the NBA investigation, Porter placed at least 13 bets on NBA games using an associate’s online sports betting account. The bets ranged from $15 to $22,000, with Porter betting a total of $54,094 on the NBA. The total payout from the bets was $76,059, netting Porter $21,965.