New court documents filed Friday have revealed 18 pitches by former Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase identified by federal prosecutors as allegedly rigged.
Key Takeaways
- Federal prosecutors identified 18 pitches from 17 games that will be central to the gambling case against Emmanuel Clase.
- One of the pitches came during Cleveland’s 2024 ALDS win over Detroit, while Luis Ortiz is accused of sharing information on two other pitches.
- Clase, Ortiz, and two others face wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy charges, with the trial set for November.
The new revelations come as Clase’s court trial, set for November, rapidly approaches. Among the pitches, identified from May 2023 through May 2025, is a wild first-pitch slider from a playoff game between the Guardians and Detroit Tigers on Oct. 5, 2024.
Federal prosecutors have identified 18 alleged rigged pitches, including one from the 2024 ALDS, for their case against Emmanuel Clase.
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) September 19, 2026
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Latest in ongoing saga involving barred pitchers
The findings, as reported by ESPN on Saturday, mark the latest in the continued saga of the Guardians' former star reliever. Clase is accused of sharing information about the pitches with bettors ahead of time, allowing them to place micro-wagers on pitch results and velocities.
The Dominican pitcher has been on unpaid leave, alongside former teammate Luis Ortiz – also indicted in the case – since March. Neither has pitched in a game since they were placed on non-disciplinary paid leave in late July 2025.
The pair, alongside two other defendants, face wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy charges, having pleaded not guilty in February.
Ortiz is alleged to have participated with two rigged pitches; however, neither was identified in the court filings. Clase, meanwhile, had initially been flagged for at least 48 games, though prosecutors will now focus on the narrower band of suspicious pitches.
"The government will only seek to prove that for one or more of approximately 18 of Clase's pitches, and for two of Ortiz's pitches, the defendants provided advance inside information about their pitches to others, who bet on them," U.S. attorney Joseph Nocella said via the documents.
Both Clase and Ortiz are accused of having received thousands of dollars in bribes to help bettors in their native Dominican Republic win as much as $500,000 in bets.
