Los Angeles Dodgers’ Superstar Shohei Ohtani Breaks Silence on Ippei Mizuhara Gambling Controversy

Last week the story broke that Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, stole at least $4.5 million of Ohtani’s money to pay off massive gambling debt.

Mizuhara was immediately fired by the Dodgers after reports came out of his having used money on illegal gambling. The drama and fallout have resulted in Ohtani speaking to reporters about his involvement.

Ohtani addressed the media about the situation, which was spoken in English by his new interpreter, Will Ireton. Ben Verlander reported the quotes on X.

“I have never bet on baseball or any sports or have asked anyone to place a bet on my behalf…Ippei has been stealing money from my account and has told lies”

Ohtani indicated that he had no idea about Mizuhara’s money theft and learned of what was going on two days before the story broke. He also expressed his disappointment and anger that someone this close to him would do such a thing.

Ohtani also indicated he has never paid money to a bookmaker or had agreed to pay off the debt that Mizuhara allegedly owed. Mizuhara initially stated that Ohtani agreed to pay off his massive gambling debts, but later retracted that story.

Shortly after the news broke about the stolen money and gambling, many more bizarre details about Mizuhara’s life began to surface. Mizuhara indicated that he graduated from the University of California, Riverside in 2007. However, UCR indicated that there was no record of Mizuhara attending the college, let alone graduating there.

Mizuhara could have taken the blame for the situation and stated outright the first time that Ohtani had nothing to do with the money being used for illegal gambling. However, Ohtani having to publicly state his side of things might forever damage Mizuhara’s reputation.

Ohtani made it clear in the press conference that he did not know about Mizuhara’s theft, gambling problems, or engaged in gambling in any form.

The Dodgers signed Ohtani to a record $700 million contract in December and he has since become even more of a global superstar. The world has been captivated by Ohtani’s personality through spring training, and his acquisition by the Dodgers could go down as the biggest free agent signings in sports history.

Sadly, this drama has worked to derail the attention being nothing but positive surrounding Ohtani. Ohtani did state in the press conference that he is preparing for this season, and that he is working with the proper authorities to move past this situation.