Guardians pitchers on leave 'until further notice'

Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz will remain on nondisciplinary paid leave "until further notice" while a gambling investigation continues, Major League Baseball announced Sunday.

MLB said in a statement Sunday that the league and players' association had agreed to extend the leaves of Clase and Ortiz, adding, "We will not comment further until the investigation has been completed."

The investigation stems from unusual betting interest in individual pitches by Ortiz in two Guardians games in June. A sportsbook reported "suspicious betting" on the first pitch thrown by Ortiz to be a ball or hit batsman to begin the second inning of a June 15 game against the Seattle Mariners and again in the third inning of a June 27 game against the St. Louis Cardinals. In both instances, Ortiz threw a first-pitch slider that was well outside the strike zone.

Integrity firm IC360, which works with sportsbooks, sports leagues and state regulators to monitor the betting market, sent out an alert to clients regarding the unusual activity involving Ortiz's pitches on June 27. Ortiz was placed on nondisciplinary paid leave July 3.

Clase, the Guardians' closer, was put on nondisciplinary paid leave weeks later, on July 28.

The Ohio Casino Control Commission, which oversees the state's sports betting market, has said it is investigating the situation alongside and independently of MLB.

Betting on the result of pitches is a niche market, offered by only a select few U.S. sportsbooks. New Jersey and Ohio have taken steps to prohibit state-licensed sportsbooks from offering such markets, commonly referred to as microbetting, but for now, some sportsbooks continue to offer betting on the result of individual pitches.

The Guardians began Sunday three games back in the American League wild-card race.