Overview
- Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn charged Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz with conspiracies tied to wire fraud, bribery to influence sporting events, and money laundering.
- The indictment alleges the pitchers agreed in advance on specific pitches that would be thrown so co-conspirators could place successful wagers on those pitch outcomes.
- Prosecutors say texts and bank records link the players to intermediaries and payments, with MLB having flagged unusual betting activity before alerting federal authorities.
- Ortiz was arrested Sunday at Boston Logan Airport and is scheduled to appear in federal court, while Clase has not been taken into federal custody.
- The filing cites about $12,000 paid to Ortiz for two intentional balls, equivalent payments to Clase, at least $60,000 in related betting gains, and as much as roughly $400,000 tied to insider pitch information; Ortiz’s attorney denies the allegations.