Major League Baseball has become the latest US sport to be involved in a betting scandal, as two Cleveland Guardians pitchers are charged with allegedly fixing pitches.
Two Cleveland Guardians pitchers have been charged in the US with allegedly conspiring to rig bets on Major League Baseball (MLB) games.
Luis Leandro Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase were indicted by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn on November 9 for their alleged roles in a criminal scheme involving corrupt sports bettors who placed fraudulent wagers worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Ortiz was arrested in Boston and is due to appear in federal court today (November 10), while Clase remains outside US custody. Both players have been placed on administrative leave by the Guardians pending the outcome of the investigation.
“Professional athletes, like Luis Leandro Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase de la Cruz hold a position of trust – not only with their teammates and their professional leagues, but with fans who believe in fair play,” said US Attorney Joseph Nocella in a statement from the US Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of New York.
He went on to explain that the pair “sold that trust to gamblers by fixing pitches,” in a scheme which “betrayed America’s pastime.”
Commenting on the arrests, the FBI described the case as an “extraordinary breach of integrity” and confirmed further arrests are possible as the investigation continues.
The indictment alleges the players worked with an inner circle of bettors to prearrange specific pitches during MLB games, allowing those with inside knowledge to profit from prop bets placed on pitch outcomes.
A look at the scheme
The alleged conspiracy began in May 2023, when Clase agreed with a group of sports bettors to manipulate the outcomes of prop bets, wagers on individual in-game events, such as the speed or type of a specific pitch.
Prosecutors claim Clase communicated with bettors in advance to confirm which pitches he would alter, often throwing balls into the dirt or well outside the strike zone to ensure predictable results. The bettors allegedly used information to place thousands of dollars in fraudulent wagers on online sportsbooks.
Clase reportedly received bribes and kickbacks from the group and occasionally contributed his own money to fund the operation. Over the course of the scheme, authorities allege he helped the group win at least $400,000 in illicit bets.
Ortiz allegedly joined the network by June 2025. Prosecutors say Ortiz and Clase coordinated to fix pitches in two separate games, with each agreeing to throw deliberate balls in exchange for bribes worth between $5,000 and $7,000.
Federal investigators noted specific examples, including games against the New York Mets, in which the pair allegedly carried out prearranged pitch-fixing. Ortiz’s participation is said to have generated at least $60,000 in fraudulent winnings for the betting group.
Both players could face up to 20 years in prison on multiple counts if convicted, including wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and influencing sporting contests by bribery.
A US crisis?
The MLB case comes amid a growing trend of match-fixing and betting-related scandals across major US sports, with prop bets at the heart of each one.
In October, NBA coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were arrested as part of a federal probe into a series of betting and poker schemes linked to organised crime.
The investigation, described by the Department of Justice as “historic in scale,” followed the earlier ban of former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter, who admitted to influencing prop bets by leaving games early.
The UFC was caught up in a similar situation just days later, when fighter Isaac Dulgarian was released after irregular betting activity was detected ahead of his bout at UFC Vegas 110. Sportsbooks refunded bets on the fight, citing integrity concerns, as authorities reviewed the evidence.
