Major League Baseball announced Monday that bets on individual pitches will be capped at $200 and banned from parlays, just one day after Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz were indicted for allegedly rigging pitches for gamblers.
According to The Associated Press, the league said the limits were agreed to by sportsbook operators representing more than 98% of the U.S. betting market.
MLB stated that pitch-level bets, which focus on outcomes like pitch velocity and balls and strikes, “present heightened integrity risks because they focus on one-off events that can be determined by a single player and can be inconsequential to the outcome of the game.”
“The risk on these pitch-level markets will be significantly mitigated by this new action targeted at the incentive to engage in misconduct,” MLB said. “The creation of a strict bet limit on this type of bet, and the ban on parlaying them, reduces the payout for these markets and the ability to circumvent the new limit.”
Clase and Ortiz were charged Sunday in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn with wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and money laundering conspiracy.
Prosecutors allege the pitchers helped two unnamed gamblers in the Dominican Republic win at least $460,000 by manipulating the speed and outcome of certain pitches, including some that landed in the dirt.
Ortiz’s attorney, Chris Georgalis, said in a statement, “He has never, and would never, improperly influence a game — not for anyone and not for anything.” Clase’s lawyer, Michael J. Ferrara, added, “Emmanuel is innocent of all charges and looks forward to clearing his name in court.”
Ortiz appeared Monday in federal court in Boston, where U.S. Magistrate Judge Donald L. Cabell granted him release under conditions including surrendering his passport, limiting travel to the Northeast, posting a $500,000 bond ($50,000 secured), and avoiding contact with potential victims, witnesses, or co-defendants.
The case follows a broader crackdown on insider gambling schemes. Last month, more than 30 individuals, including NBA figures Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, were arrested in connection with a similar gambling operation.
Billups’ attorney denied the allegations, and Rozier’s lawyer said his client “is not a gambler” and “looks forward to winning this fight.”
