Cleveland Guardians Pitch-Rigging Case Becomes First in Wave of Federal Sports Betting Trials

Opening statements began in one of Major League Baseball’s most explosive gambling scandals in years: the Cleveland Guardians alleged pitch rigging conspiracy trial. This is also the first of several sports betting cases to play out in the Eastern District of New York.

Credit: Lauren Conlin

Three-time All-Star Emmanuel Clase, 28, and teammate Luis Ortiz, 27, are standing trial alongside alleged middleman Robinson Vasquez Germosén in Brooklyn federal court before U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto. They are accused of rigging pitches for kickbacks from bettors. The feds laid out an alleged scheme involving coded messages about roosters, money transfers in the Dominican Republic and a web of middlemen.

One name repeatedly targeted by the defense during openings was Enoc Peña. Peña is an alleged co-conspirator who they claim is a serial liar with no credibility, and is imperative to the government’s case. In a shocking development, feds announced Friday that they would not call Peña to testify, as Los Angeles previously reported. The defense was furious, but still invoked his name during opening statements, and told the jury he “may or may not testify.”

“The defendants are cheaters,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Urquiola told jurors during opening statements in Brooklyn federal court, pointing to each defendant individually.

Defense attorneys had a very different explanation, arguing that prosecutors have mistaken ordinary baseball strategy, legitimate financial transactions over roosters and horses, and friendships for a criminal conspiracy.

Clase, 28, and Ortiz, 27, have pleaded not guilty to federal charges including wire fraud conspiracy, honest-services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery and money laundering conspiracy.

The trial follows more than a year of courtroom arguments over evidence, witnesses and the government’s interpretation of thousands of messages exchanged between the defendants and alleged gamblers. Feds claim Clase began participating in the scheme in 2023, providing bettors with information about the speed and type of pitches he intended to throw. Ortiz allegedly joined in June 2025.

As previously reported by Los Angeles Magazine, feds have identified 18 pitches by Clase and two by Ortiz that they believe were connected to the alleged scheme, which allegedly helped gamblers win at least $450,000.

Urquiola told jurors that Clase developed friendships with individuals who shared interests in dominoes, cockfighting and rooster breeding. They say WhatsApp messages discussing chickens and roosters were actually coded conversations about manipulating pitches in exchange for kickbacks. Jurors would see a “complicated web of intermediaries and financial transactions in the Dominican Republic,” Urquiola said, alleging that Clase eventually recruited Ortiz and that conversations about horses were used to disguise payments.

The government also said it would present testimony from Major League Baseball officials and cooperating bettors, along with financial records, electronic messages and video evidence.

Clase’s attorney, Michael Bronson, argued that the government’s theory makes little sense considering his client’s extraordinary career and multimillion-dollar earnings.

“The government wants you to believe he threw it all away for a few thousand dollars,” Bronson told jurors.

He described Clase as one of baseball’s premier closers, whose signature cutter can exceed 100 mph while his slower slider travels around 90 mph. Bronson maintained that bettors could study Clase’s pitching tendencies using publicly available statistics and predict what he might throw without any illegal assistance.

He also attacked the credibility of (the aforementioned) Enoc Peña, an alleged participant in the scheme whom he described as a “proven serial liar” and “degenerate gambler.” Bronson said the government’s case hinged on the testimony of Peña, and bashed his credibility.

According to Bronson, Peña befriended Clase, studied his pitching habits and exploited information about his shoulder and preferred weather conditions. The defense maintains that Clase was a target who had no idea his friendship was being used for gambling purposes.

“The government will not show Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz texting about a pitch thrown at a baseball game,” Bronson told jurors, insisting their conversations concerned horses and roosters, not rigged pitches.

The rooster explanation is not new. During a January hearing, defense attorneys submitted an affidavit from a bettor who insisted that prosecutors had misunderstood legitimate conversations about rooster fighting and breeding, which are popular in the Dominican Republic (and legal). A sidebar was called during Bronson’s opening statement following a remark about Ortiz and his specific pitches in question.

Germosén’s attorney, Todd Spodek, offered a similar explanation for his client’s involvement, telling jurors that “big talk, small bets” would be a big theme of the trial for Germosén.

Spodek described Germosén as a hardworking man from the Dominican Republic who operated a “savings club,” an informal arrangement in which members contribute money to a shared fund and take turns collecting from the pot. He argued that the savings club explains the large sum of money federal prosecutors intend to present as criminal activity.

Spodek acknowledged that Germosén enjoyed betting on basketball and rooster fights but insisted he did nothing illegal. He also described his client’s excitement about befriending Clase, asking jurors whether they would pass up an opportunity to become friends with a famous athlete, referencing former NBA player Jalen Rose or any of the New York Knicks. That made at least one female juror smile.

Spodek questioned why Clase, who had already earned millions, would jeopardize his career for relatively small sums. He pointed to approximately $3,000 in Germosén’s account and suggested that money Clase occasionally sent his client was for food, beer or other personal expenses.

The defense also argued that baseball tickets Clase and Ortiz reserved for Germosén were simply gestures between friends.

Germosén was added to the case in a February superseding indictment that detailed Zelle transfers, alleged coded communications and more than 100 wagers connected to the suspected scheme.

Ortiz’s attorney, Samuel Landis, delivered the final opening statement, again focusing on Peña, whom he accused of lying on tax returns, immigration documents, marriage records and bank loan applications.

Landis claimed Peña, whom he described as an undocumented immigrant facing deportation, secured a “sweetheart deal” with the feds. He argued that Peña’s testimony had been “bought and paid for,” prompting an objection from the government. Sustained, and he moved on.

Turning to Ortiz, Landis emphasized that prosecutors were relying on just two pitches.

The first occurred June 15, 2025, against Seattle Mariners outfielder Randy Arozarena. Landis argued that Arozarena struggles with pitches low and outside and that Ortiz was simply following his catcher’s instructions when he threw a slider that bounced in the dirt. The second pitch, thrown June 27 against St. Louis Cardinals catcher Pedro Pagés, was also a slider that bounced in the dirt. Neither pitch was particularly unusual, Landis argued.

“This is not a conspiracy. This is baseball,” he told jurors.

Landis also pointed to a $5,000 bank transfer that he said included a receipt describing the transaction as the “correct amount for a horse,” arguing that the payment was legitimate rather than a gambling-related bribe.

Following opening statements, prosecutors called their first witness, Paul Mifsud, Major League Baseball’s senior vice president and head baseball operations counsel. Mifsud began explaining the basic rules and structure of professional baseball as the government introduced numerous exhibits. Prosecutors eventually turned to player contracts and what they described as a “loyalty clause,” asking whether intentionally manipulating a pitch would violate a player’s contractual obligations.

Defense attorneys repeatedly objected to hypothetical questions, but Matsumoto overruled the objections. Mifsud testified that deliberately rigging a pitch would violate the clause.

During cross-examination, Clase’s attorney Michael Ferrara, a former federal prosecutor who previously worked on major Sinaloa cartel cases, focused on his client’s lucrative contract, extraordinary statistics and a documented shoulder injury.

Ferrara, who is featured in Netflix’s documentary series “The Fall of El Mayo,” walked Mifsud through Clase’s contract, including a $10 million club option for 2027 and additional potential bonuses tied to performance, awards, games pitched and innings pitched. Mifsud confirmed that the Cleveland Guardians, not MLB, were technically responsible for paying Clase.

Ferrara then highlighted his client’s three consecutive All-Star selections from 2022 through 2024 and his remarkable record as one of baseball’s top closers. Clase recorded 42 saves in 2022, 44 in 2023 and 47 in 2024. His earned run average in 2024 was just 0.61, which Mifsud described as “extraordinarily good.”

At one point, Ferrara suggested that some of Clase’s player stats were so incredible that similar statistics had not been seen since the 1800s. Matsumoto interrupted, concerned that Mifsud had not personally researched those any of these statistics or baseball facts.

Ferrara also introduced an April 21, 2025, medical record documenting Clase’s “right shoulder pain.” The record referenced the pitcher being “off his normal touch.”

Ferrara then played three clips of Clase on the mound, including footage from a May 28, 2025, game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. In all three videos, Clase threw pitches outside the strike zone, but the batters swung anyway. All three struck out.

Mifsud confirmed that two of the videos, including the Dodgers game (below), showed pitches that were not fastballs or cutters. A third video, from an October 2024 game against the Detroit Tigers, included a fastball. Ferrara also displayed MLB’s public Statcast website, which provides detailed information about pitch speed, location and individual player statistics.

Mifsud confirmed that the information is available to the public.

The questioning seemed to reiterate that Clase’s pitches, even when thrown outside the strike zone, were still legitimate. The cross-examination felt a bit clunky at times, partly because the witness appeared cautious in his responses, particularly when pressed on statistics and details he couldn’t recall off the top of his head.

Cross-examination by Germosén’s attorney was brief. Mifsud acknowledged that he did not personally know Germosén and had no personal knowledge of him, which satisfied the defense.

Ortiz’s defense was expected to continue questioning Mifsud later Wednesday.

Clase wore a light blue blazer, while Ortiz appeared in a black blazer. Several people who appeared to be relatives or supporters were present, and Germosén’s wife was reportedly in attendance. During a brief recess, Los Angeles Magazine observed several young men standing with Clase and Ortiz in the courthouse hallway. When asked whether they were family, Ortiz replied, “Yes.”

The trial unfolds amid a larger controversy surrounding sports betting, with federal criminal cases involving NBA figures Terry Rozier, Damon Jones and Chauncey Billups, as well as former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter, who previously pleaded guilty in a gambling conspiracy.

Meanwhile, the gambling industry faces scrutiny in Washington. The bipartisan Prediction Markets Are Gambling Act, introduced in March, would prohibit sports-related prediction contracts on federally regulated platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket. A separate proposal, the STOP Corrupt Bets Act, would impose even larger restrictions on contracts involving elections, sports and government actions. New Jersey has also asked the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether individual states can enforce their gambling laws against federally regulated prediction markets.

The question before the diverse Brooklyn jury of 10 women and 8 men is whether the feds can prove that two professional pitchers deliberately manipulated their performances for gambling profits, risking their entire careers.

The trial is expected to last several weeks.

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