⚾ Clase Faces 65 Years in Prison (Full Indictment)

Good morning, Cleveland! This is The 216 Scoop: WCSB’s latest deep dive is shaking the ivory towers 🎙️💰🏛️

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The backlash to Ideastream’s hostile takeover of WCSB has gone far beyond listeners of the radio station.

Cleveland City Council unanimously passed a resolution calling on Cleveland State University to restore WCSB to its students. Legal experts have accused CSU of violating sunshine laws in the transfer of the station.

Now, supporters are calling on Cuyahoga Arts and Culture to suspend a $615,630 grant for Ideastream.

“This is public money, and they played a role in knocking out a pillar of the arts ecosystem,” says Sean Watterson, co-owner of the Happy Dog. “WCSB featured ethnic programming and was where local musicians got their music played and shows promoted.”

The CAC Board meets at 4 p.m. Wednesday in Cleveland Public Library— Main Branch, to address grants for 2026. Full document here.

“We’re not saying Ideastream shouldn’t get it,” adds Watterson. “We’re asking for a resolution to this issue first.”

Ideastream is one of the biggest recipients of CAC grants, which are funded by a ‘sin’ tax on cigarettes.

Top recipients include Cleveland’s most well-endowed institutions: Playhouse Square and Cleveland Orchestra ($1 million each), Cleveland Museum of Art ($957,801) and the Rock Hall ($773,736).

Their CEOs make between $600,000 to more than $1 million, in stark contrast to cigarette smokers -- disproportionately poorer and working class – who finance the grants.

Assembly for Action, a PAC that lobbied for the increase in taxes (from 30 to 70 cents per pack) received $150,000 donations each from the Orchestra, Playhouse Square and Rock Hall.

It’s an unfair system that disburses grants to elite institutions but not venues that play a central role in the community, says Watterson.

“Independent clubs generate $1.5 billion in revenue in Ohio with half of that in Northeast Ohio yet only one in five are making money,” he says. “I don’t begrudge non-profits, but there’s something wrong about big institutions getting so much while independents making their own way get nothing.”

Emmanuel Clase was on a trajectory toward the Hall of Fame. Now, he’s on a path to jail.

The Guardians star reliever didn’t just toss a pitch in the dirt. He threw a brilliant career and, perhaps, the rest of his life away for a few thousand dollars.

Clase and teammate Luis Ortiz were indicted for their alleged involvement in a scheme to rig bets on pitchers, according to the Justice Department. Read full indictment here.

They face charges of fraud, conspiracy and bribery – and up to 65 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

The indictment claims they “agreed in advance with their co-conspirators on specific pitches that they would throw’’ and it resulted in “hundreds of fraudulent bets.”

Clase allegedly started rigging bets around May 2023. That year, his stats declined from 2022 and 2021, with his ERA increasing to 3.22 vs. 1.36 and 1.29, respectively.

Prosecutors allege Ortiz and Clase received $5,000-$7000 per rigged pitch.

The average first-time homebuyer is 40, a record high, according to the National Association of Realtors.

That’s two and seven years older than in 2024 and 2020, respectively – and reflects the impact of high prices and rates on young buyers.

But Northeast Ohio could be the beneficiary of speculative bubbles in other markets.

“We're seeing more younger buyers stepping in once they realize rent and mortgage payments are nearly the same,” says Emerson Lindsley, a loan originator with Conrad Mortgage in Strongsville. “In areas like Parma, Garfield Heights and Maple Heights, you can find quality homes in the $150K-$250K range -- often cheaper than renting.”

A report by Fortune finds that Gen Zers are fleeing the coasts for the Midwest, where homes are 30% cheaper.

Programs like Down Payment Assistance have been used to entice buyers – by helping them cover the down payment and closing costs.

“It helps younger professionals focus on stability, equity and owning instead of paying someone else's mortgage,” says Lindsley.

Pizza Week opens today with 38 area and countless takes on the delight born in 18th-century Naples, Italy. To honor the event, we’ve gone on a bender in search of Cleveland’s wildest pizzas -- from Crab Rangoon to Mexican, Turkish, Arabic and Korean pies. Check out our tour here.

Their transformation is unlikely. After all, the singing women in “Six” start out as your run-of-the-mill Tudor Queens married to Henry VIII. The hit musical remixes 500 years of romance, heartbreak and girl power – and the songs have received more than a billion streams. At 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, “Six” opens a six-day run at Conor Palace in Playhouse Square. Info.

👉 View Listing on Zillow

Bring on the luxurious delights. The Grog Shop will debut its fifth installment of its Great Bake Off – 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Based on “The Great British Bake Off,” it features area pastry chefs competing against one another to create delicious excess crafted out of fruity flavors, frostings and fillings.

They’ll be trying to impress some heavy-hitting judges with their fruit cakes.

Doug Katz, the James A Beard-nominated chef and owner of acclaimed eateries Kiln, Amba and Zhug will sit alongside Terrapin Bakery co-owner and “Cupcake Wars” star Courtney Bonning. Info.

Thousands of workers protest unemployment and economic hardship on May Day, 1933, in Public Square.

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40 °F 🌡️ 33 °F | 🌧️ | 68% | 💨 WNW ≈ 15 mph (≈ 13 knots)

45 °F 🌡️ 32 °F | ☁️ | 62% | 💨 NW ≈ 17 mph (≈ 15 knots)

49 °F 🌡️ 37 °F | ⛅ / showers late | 42% | 💨 W ≈ 20 mph (≈ 17 knots)

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Away vs. Heat, 7:30 PM November 10 (Monday)

Away vs. Heat, 7:30 PM November 12 (Wednesday)

Home vs. Raptors, 7 PM November 13 (Thursday)

Home vs. Grizzlies, 5 PM November 15 (Saturday)

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