SCANDAL: Cleveland Guardians Pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz INDICTED in Gambling Scheme

SCANDAL: Cleveland Guardians Pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz INDICTED in Gambling Scheme

Two key members of the Cleveland bullpen have been indicted, including a former Sai Young candidate. What does this mean for baseball? You are Locked On MLB, your daily MLB podcast, part of the Locked On Network, your team every day. Hello baseball fans and welcome to Locked On MLB, part of the Locked On podcast network where it’s your team every day. And this is now the number one sports podcast network. That’s right. I’m your host, Paul Francis Sullivan. Please call me Sully. Follow us at lockdown MLB Pods on Twitter or whatever they’re calling it these days. And on Instagram, I am your pal Sully. at Sully Baseball podcast on Instagram. But the best way to get a hold of us is right here on the YouTube page for those of you watching us. And make sure you leave that hashtag everyday Sully because it helps us find your comments, you know, so we can so we can talk to you, have a little interaction here. Today’s episode is brought to you by our good friends over at Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create an account, and use the code locked on MLB for $20 off your first purchase. And before we get on the topic for today, let’s go through and see what the trivia question was. And it was uh what spot in the order was Shi Otani hitting when he crushed his first big league home run on April 3rd, 2018. And uh Big John 08865 got it correct. He was batting eighth. He was batting eighth for the I believe they were the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2018. I could be wrong. They could have been the Los Angeles Angels. I know they weren’t the Anaheim Angels. They should still be the California Angels. That’s the best name for him. Can we be It’s the least confusing. Um but what are you going to do? Uh but we remember we weren’t sure about Otani. There was a big question mark. And of course, whenever anyone signs to a big huge honking contract like that, there’s never people going to say they’re paying all this money for someone who’s never played in the major leagues. Yes, they all become thirst and how the third. I always um you know, people who uh uh disagree with me for reasons and I think they’re not making the smartest uh uh argument. They they get the I guess I don’t like the DH me like home runs. Okay. They they get the Neanderthal voice. And the ones who don’t think that players from outside the United States will make it, they become thirst and howl. It all works out well in the end. So there you go. Yeah, he was batting eighth. Uh needless to say, he is done batting eighth. He’s absolutely done batting eighth. So there you have it. And um so the World Series is over. They haven’t handed out all the hardware yet and the fun hot stove leak has not kicked in. But a really unpleasant piece of news has come through the wire here. Um, this is according to a a report from ESPN’s Jess Passen and also uh Tim Stebons from MLB.com. Those are the two plays I’m going to be pulling most of my information from. We don’t have a whole hell of a lot of information, but here’s what we do know. We do know that Luis Ortiz and Emanuel Class are two pitchers for the Cleveland Guardians. and they were both uh suspended during the uh or they they were put around it was it was in July they were I guess it wasn’t a suspension it was a nondisciplinary paid leave during a uh um during a probe on the on sports gambling. Um, and Ortiz got that in Louis Ortiz got that in July and a little bit later class A was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave and that was through u uh it was then was put on for the basically the rest of the year and um you know Ortiz is a a a member of the the Cleveland Guardians bullpen and this year he was uh He wound up he actually start actually no he was uh he started a lot this year he made 16 starts to an 88 uh twothirds innings pitch of course Emanuel Class was their closer and he was had an unbelievable season in 2024 was not as good was not as good in uh this year was actually had uh had his uh you know was ineffective for a big chunk of the year. Now, here’s the funny thing. You remove those two Jenga pieces from the team in uh late in late July. They had a they had a winning record in um uh in the month of July, but you remember they went on the unbelievable run and right around the time that the uh the suspensions kicked in or that that the the paid, let’s just call the paid leave went in, was right around the 4th of July. And the Cleveland Guardians wound up after that point going 48 and 26. They were 22 games above 500 after these two went on their uh nondisciplinary paid suspension. Well, now they have been indicted there. the we’ve got to the point where the all the euphemisms have gone away and prosecutors in New York have char are indicting them on charges and this is according to MLB.com. I’m going to just quote it on charges related to an alleged scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown in Major League Baseball games. Now, I made a terrible mistake. We brought up Showi Otani earlier. I made a terrible mistake on this podcast of pontificating what I thought happened regarding Shoi Otani and his interpreter. I interpreted what had happened. Excuse the pun. I interpreted what happened was that Ape was his uh Show Otani’s buddy who ran up a bunch of big gambling debts. Otani said schmuck paid him off and then realized, “Oh, darn it. That’s not the right thing to do.” That’s what I thought was happening. That was the thing, only thing that made sense to me. And I said on the podcast, I think that’s what happened. And it turns out that’s not what happened. It turns out EP was basically uh the the talented Mr. Ripley and was getting into all of Shay’s accounts and everything, doing all this stuff without him knowing it. I thought he was Fredo. He was actually the talented Mr. Ripley. And so I’m not making that mistake again. I’m not making the mistake of saying here’s what happened or here’s what I here’s what I think happened is how I phrased it. And I turned out to be wrong. Um I’m just saying what we know. Two pitchers are charged to a scheme to rig bets on pitches thrown once they were basically off the team for good. They played the best baseball in all the American League. Those are two things you that are not up for debate. They have been indicted. They did go on that unbelievable run where they leapfrog the Detroit Tigers on the final weekend of the season. What does this mean and why is this important? Why it’s important is well, we can’t have the elements of gambling make us question what’s happening on the field. and the fact that I can bring up a couple of points regarding 2024 and Emanuel Class A as well as bringing up, you know, we just had a big conversation about PD users in the Hall of Fame. The Pete Rose from the dead is going to raise its ugly head. And a couple things that are mentioned in this book by uh Bruce uh uh by Bruce uh Cooklick called to if I mispronounced your name I’m sorry to uh to everything a season. And guess what? I’m going to bring up the not just the 1919 World Series, but the 1914 and the 1912 World Series and possibly the 1918 World Series. That these are all connected and we can’t have baseball be strong if we don’t think that the motivations are tied to gambling and that gambling will make us question the very games we watch. and we have to do everything we can to prevent that for the good of the game. But first, a word from FanDuel. The NBA is back and there’s no better way to get in on the action than FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Even if you missed the start of the game or you want to ride a hot hand, FanDuel has live bets on everything from who will score to next fourth quarter comebacks. And in baseball, you can break it down for betting on pitchto pitch. Plus, you can even combine your live bets to a same game parlay for a shot at a bigger payout. It keeps every game exciting, especially when your team’s making that late push. Right now, FanDuel is giving new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. So, head to fanduel.com, sign up, and play your game with FanDuel. It’s the official sports betting partner of the NBA. You know, when the Pete Rhodess debate was going on for it seems like ever, and it’s still going on. The man’s body is now dust and we’re still talking about it. I got I came to the conclusion that we asked the wrong question. People say, “Does Pete Rose belong in the Hall of Fame?” And I said, “I” and I said after some thought, I don’t I don’t think he wanted to be. He wanted to be able to cash in on his martyrdom. The minute he got in the Hall of Fame, he was no longer in the news. The more he was left out of the Hall of Fame, the more he was in the news, the more he was able to cash in on that. And so, I felt that the question was was incorrect. Obviously, what he did on the field as a player, he should have been on the first ballot, but he was the manager of the Reds and betting on baseball. And it it I always had to explain this over and over again cuz people what what would it matter if he bet on them to win? Well, baseball has played every day. So, if you bet on your team to win on a Saturday, that affects how you manage on a Friday and it affects how you manage on a Sunday. If you save a pitcher or you use a pitcher differently or whatnot because you’re trying to push all the chips to the center of the table on a Saturday, it’s going to affect how how you play the game before and after. Just look at this year’s game seven of the World Series. They pushed all their chips to center of the table because they needed to win the game, both Toronto and Los Angeles. Would they use Trey Yavage out of the bullpen the way they did? Would they use Blake Snell out of the bullpen the way they did? Would they pull Yamamoto on what was it? No days rest the way that they did if it wasn’t a special occasion to win all. Well, if you’re trying to win on a certain day, you’re going to manage differently. Dave Roberts won’t manage the game. You couldn’t he wouldn’t bring in Yamamoto on no day’s rest and have him pitch in extra innings or Blake Snell or Y Savage wouldn’t pitch the way he did. But you manage differently if the goal is not winning over 162 game season, but a one specific game. That’s why even betting on your team to win, you just don’t bring betting into it. don’t bring betting into it at all. That’s why it was that way. So now we’re seeing someone like Class A who um you know was the best reliever in baseball in 2024. He was a Sai Young contender. His numbers no matter if you like traditional numbers like strikeouts parading pitched you know he struck out you know he struck out ton batters his RA was was 0.61 61. He walked uh he walked nine batters unintentionally over 74 and a third innings. He was unhitable. Absolutely unhitable. And in the playoffs against uh the Detroit Tigers and the Yankees, he was a punching bag. And he allowed three home runs that year’s postseason. His erra in the division series was 6.35. His RA in the ALCS against the Yankees was 15.43. He allowed four earned runs in two and a3 innings. Four. He allowed eight earned runs in the postseason. Do you know how many earned runs he allowed all season in 2024? Five. Five earned runs over the regular season, eight earned runs in the postseason. Do I think he was betting and tipping pitches or doing whatever needed to do? No. I think he got clobbered. However, when we find out he’s indicted on betting over certain pitches and if you’re betting that he’s going to pitch well and then he gets clobbered, that would be very good for people betting against him. And we find out that he’s indicted in a betting situation regarding pitches. You can’t help but look at how horrible he played in the 2024 postseason and think, gee whiz, less than a year later, he’s on some sort of suspended pay with leave or what da da da. And then indictments come in. I think Detroit and the Yankees caught up with them. But the fact that you even have to tilt your head a little bit like the RCA dog is why we don’t have players involved with betting because even for a moment you can look at that go, wait a minute, he let up five earned runs during the regular season and eight in the postseason in a high-profile situation and he’s indicted for making bets regarding pitches. Again, I didn’t state anything there but facts. I didn’t put a I didn’t put that in a waffle iron and tell you the scenario of what I think happened. You like the little pantomime I did of making a waffle. For those of you just listening, I just did some phenomenal pantomimeing of making a waffle. But those are two these are two facts. Here’s three facts. He barely let up a run during the entire regular season. He was the best reliever in baseball. Was serious content. He was a Sai Young finalist, which is almost impossible now as a reliever. He let up nearly twice as many runs in the postseason as he did in the regular season. And he’s indicted in a betting scheme involving pitches. Those are three facts. And the fact that we can even look at those and go, “Oh boy, I hope I don’t put this puzzle together is why this is serious. It’s about what’s on the field.” And we know, hell, you’ve seen Field of Dreams. you know that the the Shoulless Joe and the rest of the Chicago White Socks in 1919 took money to lose that World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. One of the best baseball movies of all time is Eight Men Out, which is about the events around it. Now there the book that it’s based on by the great Elliot Aznoff is somewhat controversial because there are some parts of it that were fictionalized and some parts of it are from dubious sources. But what we do know is that gamblers did come in paid off the members of the White Socks who were favored to win that World Series. They took the money and the White Sox lost the World Series and the players were suspended and their testimonies were stolen. So whether or not you’re believing what Elliot Asenov wrote, what some people don’t believe in Asenoff or if you believe that they really became ghosts and ended up in a cornfield in Iowa, those are the parts that are beyond reproach. And then when you look back at the 1919 World Series, you can pull the old RCA dog and go, “Huh huh huh.” But the thing is is if you think that that was the uh um an isolated incident, you would be what is called in the industry incorrect. Word was floating around about the 1918 World Series that the Cubs took a dive while playing the Red Sox. Could have been rumors. But then you have, as was written here in To Everything a Season, the 1914 World Series, the A’s run by Connie Mack were unbelievable gigantic favorites to beat the Boston Braves who were in last place in the middle of August who went on a rampage and won the pennant. But the Braves were considered to be a mosquito to the charging elephant that were the Philadelphia A’s. And the Braves swept the A’s. Didn’t just beat them, they swept them in four. And it was one of the greatest upsets of all time. And if your money was on the Braves, you cleaned up. mentioned in here. The aftermath of that World Series was an enraged Connie Mack wound up basically breaking up the team to get his players off the club as the whispers were going on that a lot of the players were sick of the American League and wanted to jump ship to the brand new Federal League and they lay down and took a dive. Do we know that’s the truth? Was that just whispers of the time? Well, betting was so prominent then that especially knowing what happened in 1919, it’s not out of the question. There is one thing that was an interesting uh note, not just in the Azenoff book, but other breaking down of the White Socks throwing the World Series in 1919 was that the signal to the gamblers was the pitcher hitting the first batter. Boom. It’s on. The fix is on. In 1912, the Red Sox and the Giants played a star-studded World Series. It was the first ever Boston New York World Series. And one of the games got rain, one of the games got uh suspended. So there was it was four at this point was three games to two in favor of the Red Sox and there was one tie. So game seven would have been a chance to win the have the Red Sox win the World Series four games to two with one tie. And they had going on the mound Smokeoky Joe Wood. And Smokeoky Joe Wood was their ace pitcher, their answer to the great Christy Matthew. And Smoky Joe Wood was the starting pitcher of games of game seven to clinch the World Series 4 to2 for the Red Sox. 4-2 one tie. And it was a foregone conclusion that Smoky Joe Wood was going to win that game. The Giants clobbered him. He was knocked out in the first inning. Smokeoky Joe Wood hit the first batter. Does that mean Smokeoky Joe Wood threw the game? No. He was heavily favored. I’m sure all the smart money was on him. A signal in later World Series games that the fix was in was being hitting the first batter. He hit the first batter, was rocked in the first and came and pulled a Yamamoto and came out in the final game, the eighth game to win the World Series in relief against the great Christy Matthew. And the fact that we can look at those events and even start to put together a puzzle or see where the pieces lead, it’s not definive proof, but it makes you like, oo, wasn’t was it was that played on the level? Was that played on the level? Pete Rose managing the Reds where he had unbelievably talented teams, really solid players on those clubs. and losing the division in ‘ 86, 87, and 88 to upstart teams, upstart teams where there was not the deepest talent, like the 86 Astros, like the 87 Giants, like the 88 Dodgers. And then we’re finding out that he’s betting on baseball as the manager. And the first year he’s suspended in 1989, they get Lou Panella to manage in 1990. They go wire to wire and win the World Series. Again, I’m just stating facts at this point. How does that make us look at the 86, especially the 87? The Reds were much better than the San Francisco Giants that year and were in the lead for most of the year before they fell apart. And they were probably better than the 88 Dodgers, who yes, had Hershiser and Gibson, but not a whole hell of a lot after that. And they had a great year from Danny Jackson that year. They had their own ace and a solid bullpen led by John Franco and the great Eric Davis and Chris Sabo and a lot of terrific talent on the team and Hall of Famer Barry Larkin was starting to come onto his own. And we look at those three years especially and go what was going on there? And that’s why we can’t have it because baseball has to have that quality of the greatest event of a sporting event where nobody knows the outcome. We saw the great joy of what happened in the World Series we just witnessed between Los Angeles and Toronto. And we can’t have people looking a sconce and saying, “Is this on the level?” Let me tell you something. The NFL season is back and honestly, there’s nothing better than being in the stadium surrounded by fans cheering on your team. But let’s be honest, getting tickets can be a pain in the tukus. Between the long lines, the login screens, the prices, jumping at checkout, it’s frustrating. That’s why I use Game Time. It’s the app that gives the advantage back to the fans. Game time is fast, easy, and backed by the Game Time guarantee. You always get 100% authentic tickets delivered on time and at the best price. Plus, all fees are included. So, the price you see is the price you pay. Now, I use Game Time to get my tickets to go see the National League Championship Series at Dodger Stadium. And I pulled up Game Time, just a couple of tabs, boop, boop, boom, and I got great deals. And now NFL fans can you can see your favorite NFL teams for as low as a hundred tomatoes. Now the app made it super simple. You could see the exact view. When I went to the got my NLCS tickets, I could see the exact view from where I was at Dodger Stadium. But I use the zone deal. So I picked the section game time pick the seats and you save big. It’s I got to be honest with you. It’s faster. It’s cheaper and it’s less stressful than any other way I’ve ever bought tickets. So download the game time app. create an account and use the code locked on MLB for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, that’s use the promo code L O C K E D O N M LB for $20 off. Swipe tap ticket. Download Game Time when do it today. I don’t mean to be preachy today, but this is this is not a small story. And you may not agree with everything I’m saying, but I haven’t said anything that wasn’t wrong. And I looking at that 2024 ALCS, do I think class A through it? No, I don’t. But I don’t know. And there are pieces to a puzzle that make it sound like I’m not talking about being a moonlanding denier. When you’re a moonlanding denier or a flatearther, you can say, “Okay, you’ve got your work cut out for you to to prove what you’re saying.” But if you’re saying a guy may have been doing something with his pitches when he pitches completely differently in the postseason than he did in the regular season and less than a year later he is being investigated and then those turn into indictments. Now, of course, you could indict a ham sandwich, as it was very famously said, and he’s not guilty of anything, but this is the scenario. And I I I got into uh some people called me all sorts of names on here when I said that uh I found what Pete Rose did to be worse than peed users. And I I stand by that. You may not agree with me, and that’s fine. We can disagree. That’s my opinion, but it came up when I talked about the episode the other day which was about, you know, letting in the Bonses and the Clemens and the Maguiars and the SOS to the Hall of Fame. Uh I think we’re being ridiculously hypocritical as there are people in there who we know have used peeds, not suspected. We we’ve had people who have had positive tests in there. We have people involved with the Balco scandal who have been in there. So, we’re being selective in our outrage. Um, and TAS 27, one listener says, “Might as well let all the cheaters in.” Here’s why I think what Rose did and what the 1919 White Socks did was worse than what say Bonds or Clemens or Palro or Giani or Maguire or Sosa or the 2017 Astros or the 2018 Red Sox did. And that’s this. They were all trying to win. They’re all trying to find an edge to be better. Gaylord Perry’s in the Hall of Fame. We know he cheated. He didn’t break the law. The steroid abuse was breaking the law. Using a spitball is not against the law. I could hold a baseball. I could stand out on Colorado Avenue in Pasadena and lick a baseball all day and drool all over it. I’d be gross, but I wouldn’t be breaking the law. I think that’s kind of a line that you draw there. Banging a trash can is not against the law. Should be. But they’re all trying to win. When you bring gambling into it, you’re bringing in a motivation to do something other than winning. You’re betting to win that game. Then you’re what you’re saying about the games you don’t bet on is you’re not trying to win on those days or at least not putting in the same effort. I would rather have a peed user than someone who is betting on baseball. That’s my opinion. If you disagree with me, that’s your opinion. Neither one of us are wrong. Those are our opinions. But unfortunately, some of the facts regarding class A and Ortiz are not favorable right now. And obviously a weight was lifted from Cleveland after this happened, after they were taken off the roster, which seems counterintuitive to remove a player who the previous year was a finalist for the Sai Young Award, but here we are. And by the way, I just want to say to you all, most importantly, thank you. Thank you so much for making Locked on MLB your first listen. And most importantly, thank you for making Locked On the number one sports podcasting network. And whatever your team is, check that team out. Make us your first listen. But go check out, are you a Dodger fan? Are you a Yankee fan, a Red Sox fan, a Marlin fan, a Rays fan, a Cleveland Guardian fan, wherever fan base you are, we’ve got a locked on show for you. And if you’re an NHL, NBA, NFL, you like college football, we got a show for you there, too. We’ve got you covered here on the Lockdown Podcast Network. It’s your team every day. Let’s bring in the trivia question, shall we? What pitcher who was not in on the fix through a pair of complete game victories for the White Socks in the 1919 World Series? One pitcher was not going to be paid by the Gamblers, did his job, and threw two complete game victories for the White Socks in that World Series? Put your answers right down below. talking about Class A and Ortiz’s indictment. It’s not a conviction. They’re not guilty of anything, but something doesn’t smell right right now, and I don’t want that smell stinking up my game. This has been Locked on MLB. I am your host, Paul Francis Sullivan. Please call me Sully.

Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz face indictment on gambling charges related to rigging pitch bets. Could this scandal rival the 1919 Black Sox?

The episode examines why gambling poses a greater threat to baseball’s integrity than performance-enhancing drugs, exploring how Clase’s dominant regular season—just 5 earned runs allowed—contrasted sharply with his postseason collapse that saw him surrender 8 runs. Historical parallels emerge through suspected fixes in the 1914, 1918, and 1919 World Series, revealing a pattern that makes fans question what’s legitimate on the field. The discussion tackles Pete Rose’s lifetime ban, arguing that betting introduces motivations beyond winning while PED users like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens were still trying to gain competitive advantages.

Discover why the fundamental assumption that players are trying to win matters more than any other aspect of the game’s integrity.

Check out the In Memoriam Video – https://youtu.be/ISl3VGJmjrc?si=-06A-KejhbjQp4X7

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