Cleveland Guardians star Emmanuel Clase was arrested by the FBI Thursday after landing back in the United States, where he is accused of being part of a scheme to rig bets during Major League Baseball games.
Alongside fellow Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz, Clase is alleged to have taken bribes from bettors to throw certain types of pitches, including tossing balls in the dirt instead of strikes.
They are facing multiple counts including wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and bribery.
According to an indictment, unsealed Sunday in Brooklyn, the baseball stars took several thousand dollars in payoffs to help two unnamed gamblers from their native Dominican Republic win at least $460,000.
The in-game bets focused on the speed and outcome of certain pitches.
Clase flew back from the Dominican Republic on Thursday morning. On arrival at New York’s JFK Airport, he was detained by FBI agents. The 27-year-old is due to be arraigned at 2pm in Brooklyn.
Cleveland Guardians star Emmanuel Clase was arrested by the FBI on Thursday morning
His lawyer, Michael J. Ferrara, previously insisted that Clase ‘is innocent of all charges and looks forward to clearing his name in court.’
Ferrara added that the 27-year-old ‘has devoted his life to baseball and doing everything in his power to help his team win.’
Ortiz was arrested Sunday by the FBI and he pleaded not guilty to the charges during his own arraignment earlier this week. The 26-year-old was released on a $500,000 bond and is due back in court on December 2.
Conditions of his bond include location monitoring and a ban on any form of gambling, while Ortiz’s travel is restricted to New York City, Long Island, Massachusetts and Ohio. His wife is acting as suretor.
Clase is slated to be arraigned Thursday before the same judge, Magistrate Judge Marutollo.
Both Ortiz and Clase have been on non-disciplinary paid leave since July, when MLB started investigating what it said was unusually high in-game betting activity when they pitched. Some of the games in question were in April, May and June.
The pitchers ‘betrayed America’s pastime,’ US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr said. ‘Integrity, honesty and fair play are part of the DNA of professional sports.
‘When corruption infiltrates the sport, it brings disgrace not only to the participants but damages the public trust in an institution that is vital and dear to all of us.’
Ortiz’s lawyer, Chris Georgalis, said in a statement that his client was innocent and ‘has never, and would never, improperly influence a game – not for anyone and not for anything.’
Earlier this week, Major League Baseball and its sportsbook partners announced a new $200 nationwide betting limit on individual pitches while banning those wagers from parlays to disincentivize potential bad actors.
Included in sportsbooks’ menu of prop bets are lines on single pitches. Betters can wager on whether that pitch will be called a ball or a strike and whether it will be above or below a certain velocity on the radar gun. These bets may also inadvertently incentivize gamblers to conspire with players.
MLB’s announcement came after federal prosecutors claimed to have identified a scheme allegedly involving Ortiz and Clase. The scheme generated around $450,000 for gamblers, according to prosecutors.
