The Cleveland Guardians are going through a difficult situation with Emmanuel Clase.
The All-Star closer is part of an MLB investigation for his alleged involvement in a sports gambling scheme.
As such, he was placed on administrative leave months ago and was unable to finish the 2025 season.
Clase has tried to play in his homeland, the Dominican Republic, but he was banned while the investigation is ongoing.
Then, he was reportedly set to play winter ball elsewhere, but according to The Athletic, the Guardians won’t allow it.
“The Cleveland Guardians will not grant permission for star reliever Emmanuel Clase, who is under gambling investigation by Major League Baseball, to pitch in the Venezuelan winter league, three people briefed on the decision who were not authorized to speak publicly said Wednesday. The Guardians will not grant that permission while Clase remains under league investigation and MLB has informed Tiburones of that decision, sources said. (If a player’s rights are reserved by a winter-league team in his native country, he would also need that team’s permission to go abroad.),” Evan Drellich wrote.
Clase was looking to stay sharp, but the Guardians prefer that he remain sidelined.
They still hold his MLB rights, and that will continue to be the case until further notice.
While there haven’t been many updates regarding the investigation, most people agree that things aren’t looking good for the 27-year-old.
Fellow Dominican pitcher Luis L. Ortiz is also part of the investigation and, if found to have violated the rules on gambling, chances are that neither of them will ever throw another pitch in Major League Baseball.
If cleared, they could return to the Guardians, but that doesn’t seem likely at this point.
The Guardians overcame the loss of Clase as Cade Smith emerged as their closer, and he looked like a star in the making.
Ideally, Clase would be able to pair with Smith to form a dominant bullpen, but that may be nothing but wishful thinking.
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