Dodgers Ohtani to Speak to Media

Los Angeles Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani will address Monday after the illegal gambling and theft allegations against his former interpreter.

Former Interpreter

The Dodgers fired Ohtani’s former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, on Wednesday after a story came out about $4.5 million in wire sent from Othani’s bank account to a southern California bookmaking service that is under federal investigation.

According to ESPN, Othani’s camp first said Ohtani transferred the money to cover Mizuhara’s debts. Then the next day, a statement from Berk Brettler LLP, which is the law firm representing Othani, said the superstar had been a victim of massive theft. The statement also said Othani had no knowledge of his debt and had not transferred the money.

The MLB must investigate this interesting situation, especially since Othani’s camp and law firm issued two different statements. On Friday, the MLB announced that its Department of Investigations would investigate.

Ohtani Not Accused of Gambling

Ohtani has not been accused of gambling, and none of the bets are believed to have been made on baseball. If that were the case, he could face a lifetime ban like Pete Rose.  Pete Rose has been kept out of the MLB Hall of Fame because of betting in baseball.

The commissioner has discretion over penalties for players who place non-baseball bets with illegal bookmakers. The last case was in 2015 when then-Miami Marlins pitcher Jarred Cosart was fined an undisclosed amount.

If this lingers, it could be a huge distraction for the Dodgers and Othani, who are favored to win the World Series. However, manager Dave Roberts does not see that happening.

“We’re certainly battle-tested from that regard,” he said, “and we’ve shown over the years that we continue to move forward. Not to be insensitive towards various situations, but we all understand we have jobs to do. First and foremost, playing baseball and preparing have to be a part of it.”