NFL
By: George Lopez
The Los Angeles Dodgers entered the 2024 season with the sole focus of winning the World Series. The team signed two of the biggest free agents, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani to help reach that goal. Dodger fans are excited at the thought of being able to see Ohtani play each night in a Dodgers uniform. That excitement has become a cause for concern as it was reported last week that over 4 million dollars has been paid to an illegal bookie from an account belonging to Ohtani. The Dodgers were first made aware of this after their first game in South Korea. It was stated the payments were sent to cover gambling debts by Ohtani’s friend and interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. This is where the story becomes murky.
Due to a media inquiry regarding 2 payments of $500,000 each sent to the bookie from Ohtani’s account, Mizuhara stated that Ohtani sent those payments to cover gambling debts Mizuhara had accumulated. Ohtani states that Mizuhara never informed him of the media inquiry and Mizuhara to his representatives that Ohtani was paying off a debt on behalf of a friend. When the story reached the Dodgers organization, a team meeting was held where Mizuhara addressed the team regarding the matter. After this meeting, Ohtani’s representatives stated that Ohtani had been a victim of massive theft and requested an Investigation be conducted. Mizuhara’s account of the matter changed as well as he then stated that Ohtani had no knowledge of the payments being made to cover the gambling debt.
Ohtani addressed the media on Monday, March 25th in which he stated he had not placed any bets with the bookie in question nor did he have someone place the bets on his behalf. In his statement to the media, Ohtani said “Ippei has been stealing money from my account and has been telling lies. I never bet on sports or have willfully sent money to the bookmaker.” Ohtani also states he was not aware that Mizuhara had a gambling addiction and was in debt until the meeting and that he had been sending money through Ohtani’s account “And it was revealed to me during the meeting that Ippei admitted that he was sending money, using my account, to the bookmaker.”
There have been calls that Ohtani should be suspended by MLB over this issue. Pete Rose’s name has been brought up in comparison. One thing people fail to realize is Rose was banned from the sport for betting on baseball. Mizuhara has stated that he bet on international soccer, the NFL, college football, and the NBA but he never once bet on a MLB game. If the investigations show that the bets were in fact made for Ohtani, it is not automatically grounds for suspension. In MLB’s CBA (collective bargaining agreement) it does state that if anyone associated with MLB made a wager through an illegal bookmaker, it is NOT grounds for an automatic suspension. Punishment would be at the discretion of the Commissioner of Baseball. Players are allowed to make wagers, through legal means on other sports. There is a precedent of MLB not suspending a player for gambling with an illegal bookmaker. In 2015, Miami Marlins pitcher Jarred Cosart was fined an undisclosed amount for betting on other sports through illegal bookmakers. At the worst case, if it is shown Ohtani placed these bets, he will more than likely be fined an undisclosed amount.
A question that was not answered when Ohtani addressed the media is how did Mizuhara get access to his account. Most believe that there was no way possible Mizuhara could have access to that account. Katsunori Kojima, a former interpreter for the New York Mets and San Francisco Giants said it is quite plausible as he had handled financial transactions for players in the past. He stated that he handled banking, credit card applications, taxes, and car payments for Japanese players who had American bank accounts. It does stand to reason Mizuhara may have had the same relationship with Ohtani that Kojima had with players where he served as their interpreter which would have given him access to the account in question.
Most people will notice when a few dollars are missing from their bank account. How was it that Ohtani did not notice over 4 million dollars was missing from this bank account? It has been stated that the relationship between Ohtani and Mizuhara was more than player/interpreter and even more than friends. Former teammates of Ohtani’s described their relationship as more like brothers. With a relationship this close, Ohtani placed complete blind trust in Mizuhara and never imagined that his trust would be taken advantage of by someone he held in high regard. This is a wake-up call for Ohtani to know everything that is going on with his finances and not blindly trust those who say they have his best interest at heart. As this issue has proven, those close to you are capable of doing just about anything when desperation hits them hard.
The investigation into this matter is not going to go away overnight. In his address to the media, Ohtani stated his desire to focus on the season. How much of a distraction will this be not only for Ohtani but for the Dodgers organization? Ohtani as well as his teammates are going to be asked questions about this by the media at every conceivable opportunity. This has the possibility of throwing a wrench into what the Dodgers hope will be a championship winning season. Dodger fans are hoping that will not be the case. Stay tuned as more information comes out.
