Guardians' Emmanuel Clase accused of manipulating pitches in 48 different games as wire fraud trial looms
- - Guardians' Emmanuel Clase accused of manipulating pitches in 48 different games as wire fraud trial looms
Jack Baer February 6, 2026 at 2:09 AM
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The accusations against Emmanuel Clase are getting even more serious. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images) (Diamond Images via Getty Images)
The allegations against Emmanuel Clase appear to stretch much further than previously known.
A court filing has revealed the Cleveland Guardians closer is accused of manipulating pitches in 48 different MLB games over the span of two years, according to ESPN's David Purdum. That's far more than the nine specific games identified in the federal government's indictment last year.
Including playoffs, Clase appeared in 178 games ranging from May 2023 to June 2025, the timeline of the scheme alleged by prosecutors. If the 48-game figure is correct, that would mean Clase threw suspicious pitches (i.e. intentional balls to allegedly help his co-conspirators win their prop bets) in 27% of his appearances with the Guardians over that span.
That figure reportedly comes from Clase's co-defendant, Guardians teammate Luis Ortiz, who is accused of manipulating only two pitches in June 2025. It was Ortiz who was first implicated in the scandal, but his attorneys are now reportedly requesting his case be severed from Clase's due to "markedly different levels of culpability."
Basically, Ortiz's camp is arguing the case against Clase is so overwhelming, it hurts his case to be at the same defendant's table. From ESPN:
In Thursday's filing, Ortiz's attorney pointed to this difference in scale and emphasized that the indictment did not contain evidence of Ortiz communicating directly with bettors.
Georgalis argued that a jury presented "with 26 months of alleged criminal conduct by Mr. Clase — including suspect pitches during 48 games, dozens of communications with [a bettor], cash transfers and coordination of illegal wagers" could find Ortiz guilty by association.
Another court record reportedly shows that a judge asked prosecutors to provide Clase's attorneys with evidence for suspicious pitches:
"[Clase] has identified at least 250 pitches on which bets were placed, so the Court encouraged the government to disclose discovery to [Clase] as to any additional pitches that it alleges were included in the conspiracy," a record of the court proceeding states.
Clase and Ortiz were indicted in November on charges of wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery. They have both pleaded not guilty to the charges, which carry a total maximum sentence decades in prison.
Their trial is scheduled for May.
The pitchers officially remain members of the Guardians organization, but remain on the restricted list (i.e. unpaid leave). In addition to prison time, they face a lifetime ban from baseball pending MLB's investigation into the allegations.
Clase is alleged to have done all this despite his status as one of the top closers in baseball and a contract that would have paid him $6.4 million in 2026, with a pair of team options for $10 million each in 2027 and 2028.
Source: “AOL Sports”
