At 3:16 p.m. ET on April 26, just before he entered the game in the eighth inning, Cleveland Guardians reliever Emmanuel Clase texted an associate who was sitting in the stands at Progressive Field. The two then held a two-minute phone call despite MLB rules prohibiting players from using their phones during games.

Four minutes later, a group of bettors won about $11,000 by wagering that a particular pitch by Clase would register at slower than 97.95 mph. After the game, Clase and the associate rendezvoused at Clase’s residence, not the only instance of the bettor visiting Clase at his home after allegedly profiting off his predetermined pitches.

Clase and fellow Guardian pitcher Luis Ortiz were charged Sunday with wire fraud and several counts of conspiracy. The pitch-speed scheme was alleged in a 23-page indictment outlining the charges.

As Clase was racking up league-leading saves totals and All-Star Game appearances, he was allegedly spiking 57-foot sliders to benefit a group of co-conspirators. Clase and Ortiz face up to 65 years in prison if convicted.

Clase was not in custody as of early Sunday afternoon; he is out of the country, according to a law enforcement source. Ortiz was arrested Sunday in Boston and is set to appear in court on Monday.

Neither Clase nor Ortiz pitched after July, when both were placed on paid leave after the league launched an investigation into whether they were predetermining pitches. By that point, the operation had allegedly netted their co-conspirators more than $450,000 in winnings since May 2023. Clase and Ortiz appear to have received only a small cut of that profit.

The following account is alleged in the indictment. Neither Clase nor Ortiz has entered a plea. Ortiz’s lawyer vehemently denied the charges.

The pattern they deployed involved Clase relaying the pitch he would throw and whether it would land in the strike zone. The go-to combination? A slider that bounces in the dirt. Clase’s cutter routinely clocked in at 99-100 mph. His slider registered about 91 mph. So, armed with the knowledge that Clase would try to throw a slider for a ball, bettors would allegedly wager on both the velocity of the pitch and the result of it. Over the course of two-plus years, bettors placed more than 100 straight bets and parlays on Clase’s offerings.

Nearly two hours into a 6:40 p.m. game against the Cincinnati Reds on May 17, 2025, Clase texted a bettor, identified in the indictment as “Bettor-1,” asking if they were “ready.”

“But of course,” Bettor-1 responded.

Ten minutes later, several bettors won about $10,000 by wagering that a certain pitch thrown by Clase would be a ball or hit-by-pitch, and that the pitch would clock in slower than 97.95 mph. Clase buried an 88-mph slider in the dirt.

At about 1 p.m. on May 28, 10 minutes before the first pitch of a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Clase received a text from Bettor-1 asking if he was all set. Clase responded yes. At 3:36 p.m., just before Clase entered in the ninth to secure a save, two bettors placed wagers totaling about $4,000 that a particular pitch would be a ball or HBP.

Clase threw a pitch that appeared to be out of the strike zone, but the batter swung, so the bettors lost their wagers. About 20 minutes later, Bettor-1 texted Clase a GIF of a man “hanging himself with toilet paper,” according to the indictment. Clase replied 10 minutes later with a GIF of a “sad puppy dog face.”

The Guardians won that game. Clase retired all three batters he faced in the ninth.

As this unfolded behind the scenes, Clase emerged as the preeminent closer in the sport. He owns a 1.88 ERA in his big-league career, and he posted a 0.61 ERA in 2024, which earned him a third-place finish in the American League Cy Young Award voting, the best finish for a reliever in 16 years.

He landed a long-term contract extension with the Guardians before the 2022 season — about 14 months before the scheme is alleged to have commenced. Clase was guaranteed $20 million over the course of the five-year deal, with a chance to earn up to $18 million more via a pair of team options for 2027 and ’28.

And, according to the indictment, he also occasionally received bribes or kickbacks from his co-conspirators when they profited from his predetermining of pitches.

On one occasion, after Bettor-1 allegedly profited off the advance discussion, Clase directed the bettor to “send some of it to DR,” referring to his native Dominican Republic. Clase provided contact information for his preferred recipient of the money and told the bettor to send “it as if it were someone else,” Clase texted, adding that the money was “for repairs at the country house.”

Three days after bettors won about $10,000 from the advance notice during the May 17, 2025, game against the Reds, Clase texted Bettor-1 bank account information and said to let him know “when you send the thing.” The bettor replied, “I will start with ($)2,000.” An associate of Clase’s directed Bettor-1 to send about $2,000 to another individual in the D.R.

In some instances, Clase even provided the money to wager on his own pitches. On May 13, 2025, Bettor-1 texted Clase a phone number and told the pitcher to send it “there if you can. … (if) not, we can work with what we have. No problem.” Clase asked how much he should send. The bettor replied, “however much you can, 2,500 and under.” Later that day, Clase transferred about $2,500 to the individual the bettor had selected, and that individual transferred the money to the bettor.

That day, a group of bettors won about $3,500 by wagering that a particular pitch thrown by Clase would register slower than 99.45 mph and result in a ball or HBP. After the game, Bettor-1 again visited Clase at his residence.

Clase recruited fellow Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz to join in on the scheme in or around June 2025, according to the indictment.

Before Ortiz’s start on June 15 against the Seattle Mariners, the pitcher agreed with Clase that, for a $5,000 payment, he would throw a ball for his first pitch in the second inning. Clase would receive $5,000 from the bettors for arranging everything.

Ortiz threw a slider that plunged into the dirt and caromed into the catcher’s glove. The Mariners scored five runs off of him that inning.

Four days later, Clase sent Ortiz a photo of a receipt for a wire transfer of about 90,000 pesos (about $5,000) from Clase’s associate to Ortiz’s associate. Clase told Ortiz his associate would be asked about the purpose of the transfer. He messaged Ortiz, in Spanish, “Tell him that this is a payment for a horse. Payment for a horse. You got that?” “Okay, perfect,” Ortiz replied.

They set up a similar scenario for Ortiz’s start on June 27 against the St. Louis Cardinals. This time, each pitcher would receive $7,000 for their coordination.

Before the game, bank security footage captured Clase withdrawing about $50,000 in cash. He allegedly provided $15,000 of it to Bettor-1, whom Clase had provided with tickets to the game. About one hour after the withdrawal, the co-conspirator deposited the $15,000 at the same bank branch.

A group of bettors then placed $18,000 in wagers on a particular Ortiz pitch being a ball or HBP. It was. In fact, the pitch was so far outside, the catcher couldn’t reach it. The ball skipped to the backstop. The bettors netted about $37,000 in payouts. The Cardinals scored three runs off Ortiz that inning.

The game situation didn’t seem to deter Clase, who, as Cleveland’s all-time saves leader, often entered in the final inning to protect a narrow lead.

On May 19, 2023, Clase surrendered three runs in the bottom of the 10th against the New York Mets, who escaped with a 10-9 victory. Bettors won about $27,000 that night, wagering that a certain Clase pitch would clock in faster than 94.95 mph.

On June 3, 2023, bettors won $38,000 wagering that a particular Clase pitch would register slower than 94.95 mph and would be a ball or HBP. Clase, guarding a 4-2 lead, spiked a slider that struck the dirt in front of home plate and then caromed off catcher Mike Zunino, who momentarily hunched over in discomfort.

On June 7, 2023, bettors won $58,000 wagering that Clase would throw a pitch slower than 94.95 mph and for a ball or HBP. Again, he spiked a slider in the dirt that bounced toward the backstop, the first pitch in what became a four-pitch walk to start the ninth, with Cleveland ahead by three.

Bettor-1 placed about 16 parlay bets in which one leg of each parlay included eight specific Clase pitches that would be a ball or HBP. The bettor was successful on all but one of the eight, only because the batter, Dodgers outfielder Andy Páges, swung and missed on a pitch outside of the strike zone.

The Guardians were on the hook for both players’ 2025 salaries while they were on administrative leave. Clase, 27, was under team control for at least one more season. They were banking on Ortiz, 26, becoming a staple in their rotation.

Ortiz’s attorney, Chris Georgalis, sent the following statement to The Athletic: “Luis Ortiz is innocent of the charges related to two pitches he threw. He has never, and would never, improperly influence a game — not for anyone and not for anything. Luis is and always has been a fierce competitor. He has always given his best effort in every inning of every game. Those who have played with him know this. And the government’s investigation, including discussions with Luis’ teammates, supports this as well.

“As Luis’ defense team extensively explained and documented to the government before these charges were brought, 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.

“There is no credible evidence Luis knowingly did anything other than try to win games with every pitch and in every inning. Luis looks forward to fighting these charges in court. The government’s case is weak and circumstantial. He will defend himself, and he will prevail.”

The Athletic’s*** Evan Drellich contributed to this report.***