The Los Angeles Dodgers fired the longtime interpreter for Shohei Ohtani on Wednesday after allegations surfaced of a “massive theft” of Ohtani’s funds to pay off gambling debts.
“In the course of responding to recent media inquiries, we discovered that Shohei has been the victim of a massive theft and we are turning the matter over to the authorities,” Ohtani’s lawyers at Berk Brettler LLP said in a statement.
Interpreter Ippei Mizuhara was fired after reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal California bookmaker. Mizuhara was in the dugout Wednesday in South Korea where the Dodgers opened the season with a win against the San Diego Padres.
ESPN interviewed Mizuhara on Tuesday, in which the interpreter said his gambling losses ballooned past $1 million and that Ohtani paid his gambling debts. After the statement from Ohtani’s attorneys, Mizuhara backtracked on his story and claimed Ohtani had no knowledge of the gambling debts and did not transfer money to bookmakers.
In December, Ohtani signed with the Dodgers in a record-breaking $700 million deal. The club hired Mizuhara, who has been at Ohtani’s side since the Japanese star came to the U.S. to play for the Los Angeles Angels ahead of the 2018 season.
An MLB official said the league will get all the facts after any criminal proceedings are resolved, and that it confirmed with the Dodgers that the matter is being referred to law enforcement.
MLB players and employees are allowed to legally bet on sports, but baseball bets are a different story. Gambling on a game where a player is not involved would incur a one-year suspension, while a bet in a game they are involved in results in a permanent suspension, as in the Pete Rose case.
Mizuhara told ESPN he did not bet on baseball, and reports indicate he gambled on international soccer and other sports. Sports betting is legal in 40 states, but it is still illegal in California.
Using an illegal bookmaker put Mizuhara in violation of baseball’s Rule 21 (d), which states that: “Any player, umpire, or club or league official or employee who places bets with illegal book makers, or agents for illegal book makers, shall be subject to such penalty as the Commissioner deems appropriate in light of the facts and circumstances of the conduct.”
In 2015, MLB fined but did not suspend pitcher Jarred Cosart for violating Rule 21 (d).
Ohtani’s contract calls for 97% of his Dodgers salary to be deferred until 2034-43 when he will receive annual $68 million payments. Even with just a $2 million salary, Ohtani is the highest-paid player in baseball this year, thanks to an endorsement portfolio worth $65 million.
