NEW YORK — Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz pleaded not responsible Wednesday to fees that he and teammate Emmanuel Clase took bribes to assist gamblers win bets positioned on pitches they threw.
The 26-year-old beginning pitcher appeared in Brooklyn federal courtroom after his preliminary arrest Sunday at Boston’s Logan Worldwide Airport.
He was launched on a $500,000 bond with GPS monitoring till his subsequent courtroom date on Nov. 19. Ortiz, who has already surrendered his passport to authorities, was additionally ordered to restrict his journey to New York, Massachusetts and Ohio.
The opposite circumstances of his launch embrace no playing, no possessing firearms or unlawful medication and no contact with co-conspirators, victims and witnesses.
Ortiz, sporting a black leather-based jacket and denims, offered quick responses to the decide’s questions in courtroom and did not reply to reporters looking for remark as he left the courtroom together with his spouse and lawyer.
Clase, the Guardians’ former nearer and a three-time All-Star, will probably be arraigned on the identical courthouse Thursday.
The 2 natives of the Dominican Republic have been on non-disciplinary paid go away since July, when MLB started investigating what it stated was unusually excessive in-game betting exercise once they pitched.
Prosecutors say Ortiz and Clase took a number of thousand {dollars} in payoffs to assist two unnamed gamblers of their residence nation win at the least $460,000 on bets positioned on the velocity and final result of sure pitches.
They are saying Ortiz, who earned a $782,600 wage this 12 months, rigged pitches in video games towards the Seattle Mariners and the St. Louis Cardinals this summer season.
One in all Ortiz’s attorneys, Chris Georgalis, has denied the fees, saying funds between his shopper and people within the Dominican Republic which might be cited within the case had been for authorized actions.
Prosecutors say Clase, who’s on the fourth season of a $20 million, five-year contract, recruited Ortiz into the scheme. They are saying the Guardians’ all-time saves chief started offering bettors with details about his pitches in 2023 however did not ask for payoffs till this 12 months.
In a single occasion, prosecutors stated Clase spoke to to one of many betters by cellphone simply earlier than taking the mound in a sport final April towards the Boston Pink Sox. Minutes later, the bettor and his associates gained $11,000 on a wager that Clase would toss a sure pitch slower than 97.95 mph (157.63 kph).
Clase and Ortiz are every charged with wire fraud conspiracy, sincere companies wire fraud conspiracy, cash laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to affect sporting contests by bribery.
The gambling-related arrests are the newest to roil American skilled sports activities.
Final month, greater than 30 individuals, together with Portland Path Blazers head coach and Basketball Corridor of Famer Chauncey Billups and Miami Warmth guard Terry Rozier, had been arrested in a playing sweep that concerned leaked inside details about NBA athletes and rigged poker video games backed by Mafia households.
Main League Baseball, following the indictments of Clase and Ortiz, introduced new limits on betting on particular person pitches.