Major League pitchers, including star reliever, go to trial in New York on fraud charges

Former Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz go to trial Monday on charges that they accepted bribes as they colluded with gamblers who made hundreds of thousands of dollars betting correctly on individual pitches. Their careers and possibly their freedom are at stake in the jury trial expected to unfold over the next month in Brooklyn federal court. Several professional baseball players, including catchers and baseball executives, are among witnesses expected to testify. Clase, the Guardians’ former closer, and Ortiz, a starter, have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy charges and are on nondisciplinary leave from the club without pay while their fate is determined. According to an indictment, the pitchers accepted several thousand dollars in payoffs to help two gamblers from their native Dominican Republic win at least $460,000 on in-game prop bets on the speed and outcome of certain pitches. Prosecutors allege that Clase began providing the bettors with