“Irrefutable” evidence against Clase
If one Major League Baseball insider’s sources are correct, the Cleveland Guardians’ star closer may have thrown his last pitch in the league. According to Héctor Gómez, the sports editor for Z101Digital.com out of the Dominican Republic, Emanuel Clase “will never pitch in MLB again” for violating the league’s sports betting rules.
“The gambling evidence against him is irrefutable,” Gómez tweeted.
placed on non-disciplinary leave in late July
Clase, one of the best relievers in baseball, was placed on non-disciplinary leave in late July as part of a league investigation into sports betting. While allegations of what Clase did have not been made public, the investigation is tied to that of his teammate, fellow pitcher Luis Ortiz, who was placed on leave on July 3.
Both players’ paid leave was supposed to go through August 31, but that was extended “until further notice.” The Ohio Casino Control Commission has also gotten involved.
Despite the loss of Clase, the Guardians made a furious run at the end of the season to catch the Detroit Tigers, win the American League’s Central Division, and enter the playoffs as the AL’s #3 seed. They lost the series, two games to one.
Fishy pitches
While the league has held its cards close to the vest in regard to the Clase investigation, a little bit is known about the probe in Ortiz. According to ESPN’s David Purdum and Jeff Passan, sports betting integrity watchdog IC360 notified sportsbooks about two pitches Ortiz threw in June.
In both circumstances, IC360 flagged suspicious betting activity that Ortiz would throw a ball on the first pitch of specific innings. The first was in the bottom of the second inning against the Seattle Mariners on June 15, and the second was in the top of the third against the St. Louis Cardinals on June 27.
Both pitches were sliders that bounced low and outside to the right-handed batters, well out of the strike zone. Neither would have raised suspicions to anyone watching without knowing about the betting activity, though the one in the St. Louis game was very poorly thrown, nowhere close to ever being a strike. The one in the Seattle contest looked more like a run-of-the-mill bounced slider.
That is all that is known publicly about what the league may be investigating; the implication is that Ortiz and Clase were intentionally missing the strike zone for betting purposes.
Can’t go home again
Though further information on what Mr. Gómez reported is hopefully forthcoming, it has been confirmed that the investigation into alleged sports betting violations has ramifications beyond Major League Baseball for both Clase and Ortiz.
denied their registration to play on the Estrellas Orientales club
Their leaves of absence do not preclude the players from playing in other leagues, but according to ESPN’s Enrique Rojas, the Dominican Baseball League (LIDOM) has denied their registration to play on the Estrellas Orientales club, based in San Pedro de Macorís. Both players are from the country.
