Guardians' Luis Ortiz Under Investigation in Potential Betting Scandal
While the Cleveland Guardians continue to slump, riding on a six-game losing streak entering Wednesday, they will be without starting pitcher Luis Ortiz after his name emerged as a suspect in an MLB betting scandal.
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Ortiz is under investigation by the MLB after a betting-integrity firm flagged multiple scenarios of the starter's pitches receiving unusual betting activity.
Gambling firm IC360 sent multiple alerts in June to sportsbooks that involved Luis Ortiz's first pitches of specific innings.
The first instance took place in his start against the Seattle Mariners on June 15 in the bottom of the second inning, where Ortiz opened the inning with a slider that was an obvious ball.
Another alert took place on June 27, happening in Ortiz's first pitch of the top of the third inning in his start against the St. Louis Cardinals. He through another slider that was even further out of the zone.
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Ortiz was pulled from his scheduled start on Thursday against the Chicago Cubs and will be placed on "non-disciplinary leave" through the All-Star break.
The leave could be extended if the investigation remains open.
Cleveland made a statement on the situation on Thursday.
"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," the team said.
"The Guardians are not permitted to comment further at this time and will respect the league's confidential investigative process."
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Luis Ortiz has the second-most innings pitched for the Guardians this season with 88.2. Through 16 starts, he has a 4-9 record, 4.36 ERA, and 1.38 WHIP while striking out 96 batters.
Cleveland will now have left-handed relief pitcher Joey Castillo step in for Ortiz in Thursday's game against the Chicago Cubs. while the Guardians try to stay relevant in the AL Wild Card race.
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 3, 2025, where it first appeared.
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