Clase Trial: Co-conspirators dance to Backstreet Boys, then bet on alleged rigged pitches

It is not often that prosecutors play a video of a popular boy band inside a federal courtroom at a high-profile trial.

Over the first two weeks of a pitch rigging trial for Major League Baseball pitcher Emmanuel Clase, jurors have viewed numerous clips of the All-Star reliever, as he relaxed with friends in a jovial setting. In one video shown Thursday in Brooklyn federal court, Clase took swigs from a bottle of Presidente, while playing dominoes on a table adorned with a Boston Red Sox logo. Clase and Cleveland Guardians teammate Luis Ortiz hail from the Dominican Republic, where men their age usually gravitate toward high-energy Bachata and ultra-fast Dominican Debow, the island’s version of Reggaeton.

When not pitching, Clase often played dominoes with amigos such as Luis Alberto de Aza Baez, Luis Arismendy Paca Mendez and Enoc Pena, among others. In May 2023, Clase rewarded his friends with tickets to Citi Field when the Guardians opened a four-game set against the New York Mets. The Guardians faced the Mets on 19 May, in a bit of a funk after dropping two of three to the Chicago White Sox, their AL Central rivals. Neither Paca, nor his friends appeared in a dark mood. Between innings, as fans swayed to “I Want It That Way,” Paca gleefully danced to the 1999 signature hit from The Backstreet Boys.

The pitch to Marte

On the same night, Clase allegedly conspired to fix his first pitch in extra innings against former Mets outfielder Starling Marte. The pitch, a 98.5 mile-per-hour cutter landed low for a ball. While the reliever often topped 100 mph on the radar gun, several members of the entourage wagered if the pitch would eclipse 94.5 mph

Jurors watched the video of Paca as FBI Special Agent Ava Barnett gave testimony on Thursday afternoon. As the second week of the trial concluded on Friday, jurors will be left to draw their own conclusions on if Clase knowingly took part in an ornate conspiracy.

The trial for the two Guardians pitchers began 4 November and is scheduled to last through early-December. The pitchers are facing a bevy of charges in connection with the pitch rigging scheme, including: Conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery and money laundering conspiracy.

If convicted, both pitchers could face at least 20 years in federal prison. Robinson Vasquez, another defendant named in the indictment, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. All three have pleaded not guilty.

Paca, a former roommate of Clase in Ohio, is facing multiple charges, including making false statements to the FBI. While Paca is not a co-defendant in the case, he is currently being held without bail.

Betting on individual pitches

The charges centre on 18 alleged pitches, beginning with the Marte at-bat in Flushing, located approximately 12 miles from the courthouse. As Barnett testified, Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca Urquiola directed jurors to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet displayed on several screens throughout the courtroom. Barnett focused on six bets placed at DraftKings on the outcome of Clase’s pitch.

The bets, she testified, ranged from several hundred dollars to $9,500. All six, according to Barnett, resulted in successful wagers for the bettors. In total, the entourage and others at their direction won approximately $27,000 in wagers on the pitch.

Pena, cooperating witness who appears to have received immunity from the government, has emerged as a controversial figure in the case.

Days before the trial began, prosecutors indicated that it is unlikely they will call Pena to the witness stand. Attorneys for the defense have described Pena as “uncredible,” while depicting him as a person who lied on loan applications, tax forms and other financial statements.

Pena, according to Barnett, won at least two bets on the Marte pitch, totaling $5,538.40. Evidence presented at trial shows that the individuals who allegedly received inside information on Clase recorded a mix of wins and losses on the microbets.

Roosters in the pit

Barnett, a special agent at the FBI’s Newark office, returned to the witness stand on Friday. During hours of testimony, Barnett described the laborious work of the FBI in extracting WhatsApp conversations, videos, photos and texts from the defendants, as well as their co-conspirators. One sequence examined on Friday surrounded an at-bat by Ryan Jeffers, a catcher with the Minnesota Twins. On 3 June 2023, Jeffers led off the bottom of ninth when a Clase slider bounced off the grass and grazed catcher Mike Zunino around his shoulder.

“It went straight into the ground and hit the catcher,” Barnett testified.

The government focused on 24 microbets placed on the pitch, including ones from Pena and Baez. In total, the group wagered $11,671 for net wins of $26,543.51, according to an exhibit submitted by the government. The majority of the bets won, Barnett noted.

As expected, cockfighting played a prominent role in Barnett’s testimony. While the government has accused the defendants of speaking in code to disguise the nature of fixed bets, the defense claims that Clase discussed a hobby of the group, one viewed as a staple of Dominican Republic culture.

Barnett testified Friday on extractions from a conversation between Clase and Pena, where the pitcher apparently referred to a “rooster,” back in the pit.

At another point on Friday, Barnett discussed a purported screenshot of a conversation between the two, where the pitcher apparently referred to “chicken number three.” Clase, according to court filings, sent instructions to “play the third,” after killing the first two.

The language is code for a batter’s spot in the lineup or the alleged pitch that Clase intended to rig, according to prosecutors. Following the government’s direct examination of Barnett, the defense pressed the agent considerably on her interpretation of cockfighting.

A speedy trial?

Throughout the trial, attorneys from both sides have appeared at sidebar without the jury present. During a lively week of proceedings, the attorneys clashed in open court on witness credibility, discovery and a supplemental motion from prosecutors, which sought to admit a proffer statement from Vasquez. The sheer amount of disputes between the parties has raised some concerns that the trial will not be completed until after Christmas Day.

The trial will resume on Monday morning with testimony from Jenner Olivo, a government witness. Olivo is a former housemate of Pena and Vasquez in Nantucket.

On direct examination from Urquiola, Olivo testified Friday that it was his understanding that Pena sent money to Paca in exchange for inside information on certain pitches.