Cleveland Guardians’ pitcher Luis Ortiz pleads not guilty to taking bribes to aid gamblers

NEW YORK (AP) — Cleveland Guardians’ pitcher Luis Ortiz pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges that he took bribes to help gamblers win bets placed on pitches he threw. His teammate, Guardians former closer Emmanuel Clase, has also been charged in the alleged scheme.

Ortiz, the 26-year-old former starting pitcher for the club, appeared in Brooklyn federal court after his initial arrest Sunday at Boston’s Logan International Airport.

He was released on a $500,000 bond until his next court date in December, and issued GPS monitoring. Ortiz, who has already surrendered his passport to authorities, was also ordered to limit his travel to New York, Massachusetts and Ohio.

The other conditions of his release include no gambling, no possessing firearms or illegal drugs and having no contact with co-conspirators, victims and witnesses.

Ortiz, wearing a black leather jacket and jeans, provided short responses to the judge’s questions in court and didn’t respond to reporters seeking comment as he left the courtroom with his wife and lawyer.

Clase, a three-time All-Star, will be arraigned at the same courthouse Thursday. His lawyer, Michael Ferrara, said Clase maintains his innocence.

“Emmanuel Clase has devoted his life to baseball and doing everything in his power to help his team win,” he said in an emailed statement Wednesday.

The two natives of the Dominican Republic have been on non-disciplinary paid leave since July, when MLB began investigating what it said was unusually high in-game betting activity when they pitched.

Prosecutors say Ortiz and Clase took several thousand dollars in payoffs to help two unnamed gamblers in their home country win at least $460,000 on bets placed on the speed and outcome of certain pitches.

They say Ortiz, who earned a $782,600 salary this year, rigged pitches in games against the Seattle Mariners and the St. Louis Cardinals this summer.

Prosecutors say he agreed in advance with bettors to throw balls instead of strikes on pitches in exchange for bribes and kickbacks.

Chris Georgalis, a lawyer for Ortiz, has denied the charges, saying payments between his client and individuals in the Dominican Republic that were cited in the indictment were for legal activities.

Prosecutors say Clase, who is on the fourth season of a $20 million, five-year contract, recruited Ortiz into the scheme. They say the Guardians’ all-time saves leader began providing bettors with information about his pitches in 2023, but didn’t ask for payoffs until this year.

Clase and Ortiz are each charged with wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery.

Following the pitchers’ indictments, Major League Baseball announced new limits on betting on individual pitches.

The indictments are the latest gambling-related allegations to roil American professional sports.

Last month, more than 30 people, including Portland Trail Blazers head coach and Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, were arrested in what authorities described as a gambling sweep involving leaked inside information about NBA athletes and rigged poker games backed by Mafia families.