A Pitch in the Dirt Illustrates an Alleged Betting Scheme

Sports betting scandals seem to be surfacing more often these days, but the one involving two Cleveland Guardians pitchers is one of the bigger ones. Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz could go from the mound to prison—for more than 60 years—if convicted. They're not accused of throwing games but of rigging individual pitches. Because, yes, today's bettors can wager on whether a particular pitch will be a ball or a strike. The AP has a detailed look at 10 particular pitches mentioned in the indictment, eight of them by Clase. One example of how the alleged scheme worked:

• In the dirt: In a game on June 27, 2025, bettors placed about $18,000 in wagers that a particular pitch by Ortiz would be a ball, according to the indictment. The slider he threw bounced before the plate and wound up rolling to the backstop. Watch it at the Athletic, which has video of that and other suspect pitches. The bettors more than doubled their money on the pitch.