Cleveland Guardians pitcher Luis Ortiz pleaded not guilty in Brooklyn Wednesday to federal charges he hurled pitches into the dirt in exchange for bribes, so online gamblers could win big by betting on his individual throws.

Ortiz, 26, dressed in a black leather jacket and ripped, faded jeans, wore his dreadlocked hair in a ponytail as he made his first appearance in Brooklyn Federal Court Wednesday — just three days after he and fellow Guardians pitcher Emmanuel Clase became the latest pro sports figures to be indicted in a sports betting scandal.

Ortiz is accused of taking two bribes, one for $5,000, the other for $7,000, to throw a ball instead of a strike as the first pitch of a specific at-bat on June 15 and on June 27. Clase, who rigged more than 100 pitches dating back to 2023,

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