Cleveland Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase is the latest player to find himself wrapped up in a Major League Baseball gambling probe.
On Monday the league announced Clase was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave through August 31st as part of an investigation into sports gambling.
He isn’t the only Guardians player in hot water as earlier this month the MLB announced it had extended Luis Ortiz’s paid leave, who faces allegations of pre-determining the outcome of certain pitches.
The MLB is looking into two specific pitches that Ortiz threw, with both incidents first-pitch sliders that were well outside the strike zone.
A betting integrity firm sent an alert to online casinos regarding potential foul play when unusual gambling activity was flagged in Ohio, New York and New Jersey.
Clase and Ortiz are known to be close friends in the Guardians locker room, sitting next to each other in spring training and bonding over their passion for the Dominican Republic.
This isn’t the first time Clase has been caught up in controversy. In 2020 he missed the entire season because of a suspension for PEDs but has since become one of baseball’s premier handlers of the ninth inning.
WATCH: Emmanuel Clase’s First Pitches To Start An Inning This Season
— mj (@Hockey_Is_All) July 28, 2025
Guardians Manager Stephen Vogt: “I’m Not Happy, This Stinks”
In a statement to the media before Cleveland’s loss to Colorado on Monday night, Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said:
“I’m not happy. This stinks. It’s a different part of our game now because it’s legal. Two of our guys are being investigated and it hurts. It’s an unfortunate situation.”
Clase is an important player for the team, leading the American League in saves in each of the last three seasons and he finished third in voting for AL Cy Young in 2024.
The second suspension comes at an extremely inconvenient time for the team who sit on the edge of the playoff picture in the American League, four games out of a wild-card spot.
Betting scandals are seemingly dominating sport in the US these days, not long after an investigation revealed a professional bettor placed 30 wagers in 46 minutes on Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier unders.
Joe Lyons is a betting industry writer for GamblingIndustryNews with years of experience on reputable gambling websites. Joe specialises in long form content in the world of sports betting and gambling. Joe is recognised as an expert in sports fields such as horse racing, soccer, NFL and NBA.
