The world of professional baseball has been rocked by a scandal that continues to send shockwaves through Ohio and beyond, as two Cleveland Guardians pitchers, Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, face serious federal charges for their alleged involvement in a betting scheme. The fallout has not only cast a shadow over the upcoming Major League Baseball (MLB) season but has also triggered a political reckoning in Ohio, where the legalization of sports gambling is now under intense scrutiny.
Just weeks before the start of Spring Training Camp, the Guardians and their fans find themselves in limbo. Both Clase and Ortiz, once reliable arms in the bullpen and rotation, were indicted on charges including wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and money laundering conspiracy. The accusations stem from an alleged plot to rig bets on balls and strikes during live MLB games—a revelation uncovered by a federal investigation that has already led to sweeping regulatory changes in Ohio’s sports betting landscape.
The legal stakes are sky-high. If convicted, Clase and Ortiz could each face up to 20 years behind bars. Yet, both players have strenuously denied any wrongdoing. Ortiz’s attorney was emphatic in his defense, stating, “He has never, and would never, improperly influence a game—not for anyone and not for anything.” The Guardians organization, for its part, has pledged full cooperation with both law enforcement and MLB investigators, declaring, “We are aware of the recent law enforcement action. We will continue to fully cooperate with both law enforcement and Major League Baseball as their investigations continue.”
While the baseball world waits for clarity, the scandal has reignited a fierce debate over the wisdom of legalizing sports gambling in Ohio. Governor Mike DeWine, who signed the 2021 law that opened the floodgates to legal betting in the Buckeye State, has expressed deep regret over his decision. “Ohio shouldn’t have done it,” DeWine told The Associated Press, reflecting on the unintended consequences of House Bill 29, which took effect on January 1, 2023. “Look, we’ve always had gambling, we’re always going to have gambling. But just the power of these companies and the deep, deep, deep pockets they have to advertise and do everything they can to get someone to place that bet is really different once you have legalization of them.”
DeWine’s change of heart did not arrive overnight. The governor’s concerns began almost immediately after the law’s implementation, as reports surfaced of gamblers threatening college athletes, including members of the University of Dayton basketball team. Alarmed by the growing influence of the gambling industry—bolstered by over $11 billion in U.S. revenue in 2025 and nearly $1 million in political donations to the Republican Governors Association in 2021-2022—DeWine started pushing for tighter controls. He reached out to NCAA President Charlie Baker to successfully remove collegiate prop bets from Ohio’s list of legal wagers. The Guardians case only intensified his resolve.
The recent indictments of Clase and Ortiz spurred DeWine into action once more, this time targeting the heart of the betting controversy: micro-betting, or prop bets, on individual pitches. Working closely with MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, DeWine brokered a deal that capped prop bets on single pitches at $200 and excluded them from parlays. The move, announced earlier this month, marked a significant shift in how baseball and its gaming partners approach risk management. “Gov. DeWine really did a huge service, I think—to us, certainly, I can’t speak for any of the other sports—in terms of kind of bringing forward the need to do something in this area,” Manfred said last week.
But DeWine isn’t stopping there. He’s calling on commissioners and players’ unions from all major U.S. sports leagues to consider banning prop bets outright, warning, “They’re just playing with fire. I mean, they are just asking for more and more trouble, their failure to address this.” While acknowledging that a full repeal of Ohio’s sports betting law is unlikely—“There’s not the votes for that. I can count,” DeWine admitted—he remains committed to advocating for broader restrictions, believing “the integrity of sports is at stake.”
The gambling industry’s response has been mixed. Some powerful state lawmakers, like Republican House Finance Chairman Brian Stewart, have defended prop bets as a significant and popular part of Ohio’s sports betting market. “It’s something that clearly a lot of Ohioans have taken part in and enjoy, and I don’t think there’s something that we should eliminate entirely,” Stewart told cleveland.com in August. Meanwhile, lobbyists and political action committees tied to major gaming companies have continued to pump money into Ohio’s political system, with about $130,000 directed to state legislators over the past three years.
As MLB’s investigation continues, Clase and Ortiz remain on non-disciplinary leave, their futures with the Guardians—and perhaps in baseball altogether—hanging in the balance. The Guardians, who had high hopes for the upcoming season, now face a cloud of uncertainty as Spring Training approaches in February 2026. The scandal has not only forced the franchise to confront the possible loss of two key players but has also placed it at the center of a national conversation about gambling’s place in sports.
For now, the Guardians and their fans can only wait. The team’s leadership, along with MLB officials, is closely monitoring the legal proceedings and the ongoing investigation. The outcome could have far-reaching implications, not just for Cleveland’s roster but for the entire league’s approach to player conduct and gambling regulation.
In the meantime, Governor DeWine continues to use his platform to push for reform, leveraging his experience as both a policymaker and a lifelong baseball fan. “So, you try to do what you can do, and you try and warn people, and try to take action like we did with collegiate, and you try to take action like what we’re doing with baseball,” DeWine said. “But we’ve got to keep pushing these other sports to do it, too.”
With Spring Training on the horizon and the investigation still unresolved, the Guardians’ season—and the future shape of sports betting in Ohio—remains very much in play. The coming months will determine not only the fate of Clase and Ortiz but also the direction of sports integrity efforts across the nation.
