Cleveland Guardians’ Emmanuel Clase arrested at JFK airport, pleads not guilty in pitch rigging case

Cleveland Guardian’s All-Star pitcher Emmanuel Clase was arrested at JFK airport and brought to a Brooklyn courtroom to be arraigned Thursday for his alleged involvement in what prosecutors call a “scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown during Major League Baseball games.” 

An imposing presence on the mound, Clase showed little emotion in federal court as he entered a not guilty plea, spending much of the proceedings leaning back in his chair with arms folded and at times wiping sweat from his face. When first arriving in court, Clase looked surprised by the size of the crowd in the gallery. 

Clase is among the latest athletes implicated in a wide-ranging federal gambling investigation that has spanned across American sports leagues. The arrests highlight a new threat to the integrity of professional sports amid an explosion of legalized betting in the U.S.

The charges against the pitcher were announced Sunday, and include wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and money laundering conspiracy. Clase flew to New York on Thursday morning from his native Dominican Republic and was joined in the courtroom by his lawyer, Michael Ferrera, to face the gambling allegations. Clase’s wife and young daughter remained out of the country. 

U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Marutollo asked if Clase understood the charges against him, and, after a small sidebar with an interpreter and his attorney, Clase answered in the affirmative. 

In a bid to forgo location monitoring, Ferrera noted that Clase agreed to surrender his passport and had returned to the U.S. voluntarily. He was also working to have his wife and daughter join him in the U.S., Ferrera said. But Judge Marutollo remained adamant that Clase’s financial status and ties to his home country made location monitoring necessary to curtail the risk of him fleeing. Clase was released on $600,000 bond.  

Clase’s teammate and co-defendant, fellow pitcher Luis Ortiz, was arraigned in court Wednesday on similar charges. Ortiz appeared solemn and nervous at times, using an interpreter to explain his bail package to him. He was joined in the courtroom by his wife, Susan.  

Ortiz, who is also a Dominican national, was released on $500,000 bond and given a location monitoring device to wear until a second party can help secure his bail. The judge also expressed concerns that Ortiz could be considered a flight risk given his wealth and connections to the Dominican Republic. 

Ortiz did not respond to questions as he exited the courthouse on Wednesday. Walking arm in arm with his wife, he seemed overwhelmed by the amount of attention the case was gathering. 

The two pitchers have been on non-disciplinary leave since July after Major League Baseball opened its investigation into their potential involvement in skewing their pitches to help bettors. That investigation remains ongoing by the league. In a statement earlier this week, MLB announced new restrictions on prop bets wagered on the sport, including wager caps on pitch-level markets at $200.

Chris Georgalis, Ortiz’s lawyer, told CBS News that he had “extensively explained and documented to the government before these charges were brought [that] Luis’ payments and other transfers of money between him and individuals in the Dominican Republic were for lawful activities.”

“Notably, the indictment completely lacks any alleged evidence connecting Luis to these alleged bettors or demonstrating any purposeful involvement in a scheme,” Georgalis said. 

Seth Zuckerman, a criminal defense attorney and former senior assistant district attorney with the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, spoke to CBS News about the case and what the defense might do.

“I think a good defense of these players is, these guys are making millions, and they allegedly got what, $5,000? For pitches like that, that doesn’t make sense,” Zuckerman said. 

Zuckerman said that while the government may have evidence from the bank transactions, prosecutors will have the burden of proving the pitchers acted with an intent to deceive. 

“Do they have texts or emails? What evidence is out there that connects them to the gamblers, the people who were making money off of this information?” he asked. 

In statements to CBS News, lawyers for both Guardians pitchers maintained their clients’ innocence. Ortiz’s lawyer said there are questions regarding the strength of the evidence against his client. 

Clase and Ortiz are not the only MLB players to be wrapped up in a sports betting-related scandal. A CBS News analysis found that in the last five years, several players have been suspended or banned for breaking Rule 21, which prohibits players from betting on the sport. In one case, former San Diego Padres shortstop Tucupita Marcano was banned from the league for life, the first player to receive that punishment in nearly a century. 

In addition to those cases, there was last year’s blockbuster case involving Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, who pleaded guilty to charges stemming from debts he had accrued betting on professional sports using an illegal bookmaker. 

Clase’s arrest also comes on the heels of a recent announcement from federal law enforcement officials of a betting scheme allegedly involving NBA player Terry Rozier and coach Chauncey Billups, who were arrested a few weeks ago by federal agents. 

Clase and Ortiz are due back in court in December for a status conference before District Judge Matsumoto.