The Cleveland Guardians simply cannot catch a break.
If things hadn’t been complicated enough for them this season, they could now lose two key members of the team.
Luis L. Ortiz, who was making a legitimate case for being a starter, and Emmanuel Clase, one of the best closers in all of baseball, are now on non-disciplinary paid leave because of their alleged involvement in a sports betting scam.
With that in mind, Matt Fontana claimed that there was a legitimate chance we’ve already seen the last of them, not only in Cleveland but in the majors as a whole:
“There’s a real world that Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz are lifetime banned from Major League Baseball. There’s a real world that that happens. If it is found out that they were throwing pitches the way that they were doing, they will be kicked out for life. I take no joy in saying that. It had to happen here, man,” Fontana said.
"There's a real world that Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz
are lifetime banned from Major League Baseball."Do you all have any hope of seeing these two ever pitch in Cleveland or the MLB again? pic.twitter.com/3mvcg9LUh7
— Matt Fontana Show (@MattFontanaShow) August 2, 2025
It’s still early to tell, but most reports agree that things don’t look good for either of them.
The integrity of the game should be above all things, so even if this will clearly hurt the team, they should face the ultimate punishment if they were, in fact, doing so.
Sports betting continues to be a controversial subject, and it’s ironic that major sports leagues are embracing the industry and pushing so hard to get the fans hooked on it.
NEXT: Hunter Gaddis Notches Notable Career Feat Against Twins
