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Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Wednesday that the league will cooperate with a U.S. Senate committee’s request for documents detailing gambling investigations.
“We will respond fully and cooperatively and in a timely manner to the Senate investigation,” Manfred said during a news conference at an owners’ meeting.
The sport has been rocked by a scandal involving Cleveland Guardians players Emanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz, who are accused of helping players by accepting bribes for rig spots.
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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred speaks during the first round of the MLB baseball draft on Sunday, July 13, 2025, in Atlanta, Georgia. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Sens. Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee sent a letter to Manfred on Monday asking for information by Dec. 5.
The committee asks for answers to six questions by December 5 at the latest.
- “How and when was MLB made aware of suspicious betting and game-fixing activity by Emmanuel Clase or Luis Ortiz? Provide sufficient documents to support your answer?”
- “Show documents sufficient to show MLB’s policies and procedures regarding sports betting, gambling or game-fixing by MLB or an affiliated team’s players, coaches, employees or owners.”
- “Read any investigation of an MLB or affiliated team’s players, coaches, employees or owners for violation of MLB sports betting, gambling or game-fixing rules or related criminal conduct between January 1, 2020 and today.”
- “Display all documents related to any investigation listed in response to Request 3, including: Procedures and policies used to conduct any relevant investigation; Documents received by third parties or otherwise collected by MLB during any relevant investigation; and findings, conclusions and actions taken as a result of any relevant investigation.”
- Procedures and policies used to conduct any relevant investigation;
- Documents received by third parties or otherwise collected by MLB during any relevant investigation; and
- Findings, conclusions and actions taken as a result of any relevant investigation.”
- “Ensure communication between MLB and any sports betting platform or sports gambling integrity monitor regarding suspicious or flagged sports bets: Placed by MLB’s or an affiliated team’s players, coaches, employees or owners; or Placed on MLB games or suggestions related to MLB games, players or teams.”
- Posted by MLB’s or an affiliated team’s players, coaches, employees or owners; or
- Placed on MLB games or suggestions related to MLB games, players or teams.”
- “Explain the extent to which MLB has addressed and plans to further address the alleged instances of sports betting, gambling and game fraud, including: How, if at all, MLB plans to revise its rules, policies, procedures or enforcement structure; How, if at all, MLB plans to revise or enforce its rules relating to gambling and mobile phones, to ensure that MLB uses rules relating to gambling and mobile phones; coaches and owners do not have ties to organized crime.”
- How, if at all, MLB plans to revise its rules, policies, procedures or enforcement structure;
- How, if at all, does MLB plan to revise or enforce its rules regarding cell phone use during games; and
- How MLB Plans to Ensure Players, Employees, Coaches and Owners Have No Ties to Organized Crime.”
Two days after the charges were unsealed on Nov. 9, MLB said its licensed gaming operators will limit bets on individual seats to $200 and exclude them from parlays.
“We think the steps we’ve taken in terms of limiting the size of these prop bets and banning parlays from them is a really, really significant change that should reduce the incentive for anyone to get involved in an inappropriate way,” Manfred said.
MLB CRACKS DOWN WITH NEW BET LIMIT AFTER CLEVELAND PITCHERS COME INTO GAMBLING SCHEME
Sens. Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee sent a letter to Manfred on Monday asking for information by Dec. 5. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
Manfred said MLB’s internal investigation into the Cleveland pitchers did not have a timetable. Ortiz was placed on paid leave on July 3 and Clase on July 28.
“We believe we need to use the off-season to ensure we conduct the most thorough and complete investigation possible,” he said.
Both Ortiz and Clase have pleaded not guilty.
Clase and Ortiz were arrested and appeared in federal court in New York last week. Clase, a three-time All-Star, pleaded not guilty to charges that he accepted bribes to help players win money on his pitches. Ortiz also pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Officials said in the indictment that from May 2023 to June 2025, Clase agreed with a co-conspirator to “throw specific pitches in certain MLB games” so that the bettors they allegedly colluded with “would benefit from illegal betting based on this inside information.” Ortiz reportedly joined the scheme in June 2025.
The indictment said Clase was conferring with a player about throwing a ball at first pitch in a bullpen when he was brought into games in relief. The indictment pointed to instances in specific games, including May 19, 2023 vs. New York Mets; June 2, 2023, vs. Minnesota Twins; and June 7, 2023 against the Boston Red Sox.
Clase allegedly began soliciting and receiving bribes and kickbacks to agree to throw the specific pitches in April, according to the indictment. In one instance, the indictment said, Clase used his phone in the middle of a game to coordinate with a player on a pitch he wanted to throw.
Bettors reportedly won $400,000 from betting platforms on pitches thrown by Clase between 2023 and 2025.
When Ortiz allegedly joined the scheme, the indictment said, he agreed to throw balls over strikes on certain pitches in exchange for bribes or kickbacks. He reportedly agreed to throw a ball on June 15 at Seattle Mariners for about $5,000 in his first pitch in the second inning.
The indictment said Ortiz agreed to throw a ball on his first pitch of the third inning on June 27 against St. Louis Cardinals for $7,000. In June 2025, players won at least $60,000 on pitches thrown by Ortiz.
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Cleveland Guardians pitchers Luis Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase’s leaves of absence were extended indefinitely until August 31, 2025. (IMAGN/AP)
The indictment came weeks after three NBA figures were swept up into one FBI operation involving illegal gambling. Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones were among the more than two dozen arrested in the scheme.
