Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase's fraudulent behavior was far worse than we thought

Things went from bad to worse for Guardians reliever Emmanuel Clase on Thursday. 

While Clase’s MLB career was already on life support due to his alleged involvement in a pitch rigging scheme, new court documents filed Thursday allege that Clase threw suspect pitches in at least 48 games over the past twotwo-plus seasons, which is more than originally known. 

According to a story from ESPN’s David Purdum, the filed documents are from the attorney for Guardians Luis Ortiz, who is an alleged co-conspirator and was the first Cleveland player to be placed on paid leave as a part of the sports betting investigation that eventually snared Clase.

Ortiz’s attorney wrote that “the government is accusing Clase of manipulating his performance in dozens of games,” and asked for Ortiz’s case to be tried separately than Clase’s. 

The biggest reason for that is that Ortiz is accused of rigging pitches for two games last season while Clase has allegedly been doing it since 2023. While we already knew that Clase had previously been caught using his phone when he shouldn’t have as well as communicating with bettors during games, this is the first time there’s been any information given about his scheme going beyond the 2025 season. 

Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase was allegedly cooking the books for a lot longer than initially believed 

As Purdum pointed out in his story, Clase appeared in 197 regular-season games from 2023 to July 2025, so he’d have altered his performance for bettors in about half of those games (so long as the allegations are true). 

While Clase was still one of the best relievers during that time period (2.22 ERA with 115 saves), his alleged manipulation is believed to come on the first pitch of at-bats; most of which he spiked into the dirt.  

Although Clase is technically still on the Guardians’ payroll, this is another depressing development that all but confirms that Clase has already thrown his last pitch in professional baseball. 

The players in the Guardians’ clubhouse were quick to move on from him after he was placed on paid leave, and Chris Antonetti has already said the Guardians are operating as if neither pitcher is going to be on their roster for 2026.

It’s also another reminder that the black cloud of Clase is going to hang over the Guardians for the foreseeable future regardless of what happens in his criminal trial.

While Cleveland’s bullpen was able to pull things together after he was placed on paid leave, the macro roster ramifications are still playing out. 

Not only did the Guardians’ front office not get a chance to capitalize on his trade market, but they also still have his work around the fact that his contract is on the books for 2026. 

Clase had already become public enemy No. 1 in Cleveland, but this new filing makes it seem like that disdain for him will grow even more.