CHICAGO — Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz has been placed on “non-disciplinary paid leave” through the end of the All-Star break as a result of an MLB investigation, with multiple sources telling The Athletic that the probe is related to gambling.
The league is investigating Ortiz for a pair of suspicious pitches in games this season that drew unusual betting activity, according to ESPN. The pitches were flagged by a betting-integrity firm and referred to sportsbook operators.
The first pitch came in the second inning of a June 15 game against the Seattle Mariners; the firm identified unusual betting action on whether the result of the pitch would be a ball or a hit-by-pitch, according to ESPN. Ortiz threw a slider far outside the zone, leading to a walk and a five-run inning.
The second pitch came in the top of the third inning of a June 27 game against the St. Louis Cardinals. According to ESPN, there was again unusual betting activity on the pitch to be a ball or a hit-by-pitch, and Ortiz spiked a slider significantly out of the strike zone, leading to a home run and a three-run inning.
The league announced Ortiz’s leave on Thursday, when he was scheduled to start against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. MLB said in a statement it would not comment further until the conclusion of the investigation.
“The Guardians have been notified by Major League Baseball that Luis Ortiz has been placed on leave per an agreement with the Players Association due to an ongoing league investigation,” read a statement issued by the Guardians, who promoted Joey Cantillo from Triple-A Columbus to start in Ortiz’s place. “The Guardians are not permitted to comment further at this time, and will respect the league’s confidential investigative process.”
Baseball has dealt with numerous betting-related issues since the Supreme Court struck down a law barring state-authorized sports betting in 2018.
Last year, baseball’s most prominent player, Shohei Ohtani, was embroiled in a betting scandal after it was learned that his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, had stolen $17 million from the three-time MVP and used it to bet with illegal bookies. Mizuhara reported to federal prison to serve a 57-month sentence for fraud last month.
Also in 2024, MLB banned San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano for life for betting on his own team. The league also suspended four other players for a year for betting on baseball. MLB umpire Pat Hoberg was fired earlier this year after it was learned that he shared sports betting accounts with a friend who bet on baseball games.
Earlier this year, commissioner Rob Manfred reinstated baseball’s all-time hit leader, Pete Rose, and other deceased players including members of the 1919 Chicago White Sox team that threw the World Series, from baseball’s permanently ineligible list. The move was a dramatic about-face from the league, which previously had held that players who bet on baseball would remain banned even after their deaths, and came following discussions on the subject with President Donald Trump. Rose and the so-called Black Sox players are now eligible for induction into baseball’s Hall of Fame.
The news about baseball’s investigation involving Ortiz came just days after it became public that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York has opened a federal investigation into NBA guard Malik Beasley related to gambling. Beasley’s attorney, Steve Haney, told The Athletic on Sunday that Beasley, who played for the Detroit Pistons last season, was a person of interest in the investigation but that no formal allegations had been made and no charges filed.
The Eastern District has also charged six people with conspiracy to defraud a sports betting company for their roles in an alleged scheme involving Toronto Raptors guard Jontay Porter. Four people have pleaded guilty, including Porter, who pleaded to one count of wire fraud conspiracy and is awaiting sentencing. He was banned from the NBA last April after the league said he bet on games and gave inside information to gamblers. Haney said that it was not clear if the Beasley investigation was related to the Porter case.
This is Ortiz’s fourth year in MLB, but his first season in Cleveland. The Guardians reached the ALCS last fall, but the team’s front office entered the offseason concerned with its starting pitching depth. They shipped Gold Glove-winning second baseman Andrés Giménez to the Blue Jays in a three-team swap that landed the 26-year-old Ortiz in Cleveland. Ortiz enjoyed a breakout season with the Pirates in 2024 and is under team control through the 2029 season.
In 16 starts with the Guardians this season, Ortiz owns a 4.36 ERA, with more than a strikeout per inning, but with a high walk rate. Cleveland’s rotation has been trending in the right direction for two months following a rocky April, but the team overall is in a free-fall, having lost six straight to drop four games under the .500 mark and 12.5 games behind the Tigers in the AL Central.
Ortiz signed with the Pirates as a 19-year-old in 2018. He appeared in 59 games for their big-league club from 2022-24. He will not count against the Guardians’ 26- or 40-man rosters while on leave.
(Photo: Justin K. Aller / Getty Images)
