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OAKLAND PARK, Fla. (Gambling911.com) - Federal prosecutors have identified 18 pitches, including one from a 2024 playoff game, that they allege involved sharing with bettors.
In the documents, prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York included a list of the individual pitches that Clase threw in 17 games spanning from May 19, 2023, to May 28, 2025.. They claim to have collected hundreds of gigabytes of files pulled from a number of electronic devices.
According to prosecutors, he and another Guardians pitcher, Luis Ortiz, accepted thousands of dollars in bribes to help two unnamed gamblers in their native Dominican Republic win at least $460,000 on bets placed on the speed and outcome of their pitches.
They allege that Clase, the Guardians’ star closer, began providing the bettors with information about his pitches in 2023 and then recruited Ortiz into the scheme earlier this year.
Lawyers for both men have denied the charges. Ortiz’s lawyer has maintained that payments between his client and individuals in the Dominican Republic were for legal activities, not payoffs.
The prosecution’s list of pitches in question thrown by Clase included one against Starling Marte of the Mets in May 2023 and another during the 2024 American League playoffs against Detroit’s Matt Vierling.
“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 wrote.
The filing did not specify the pitches allegedly thrown by Ortiz, but two of his outings last year were flagged by sportsbooks for irregular betting activity on specific pitches.
Both Clase and Ortiz have been on leave since June 2025.
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
