"I have not” - Dave Roberts dismisses "conversation" exhalts Shohei Ohtani's magnificence over ongoing Ippei Mizuhara drama

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has admitted that, despite the massive furore surrounding Shohei Ohtani's interpreter, he has not spoken to the star directly.

Roberts' comments came on the latest episode of the "Windup Podcast." When host Jason Stark asked the former Manager of the Year about the extent of his conversations with Ohtani about the matter, Roberts conceded that the exchanges have been minimal:

“I have not, I could have, I can, I just feel that he’s gone through enough. I’m more taking and being of the mind to just move on from it, and not to kind of rehash things.

"Nothing from his demeanor or performance has shown that we need to have that conversation. I’m sure he’s had it with other people; his agent, his wife, but for me, we just talk baseball.”

According to the Los Angeles Dodgers manager, Shohei Ohtani has already been through enough media attention regarding the situation.

Instead, Roberts is choosing to focus on baseball. In 37 games this year, Ohtani has been nothing short of incredible, having hit .365/.435/.696, while leading the league in hits, runs, batting average and home runs.

The Dodgers' season was merely days old when a situation broke that would alter Shohei Ohtani's life forever. Despite the scandal encircling Ohtani's long time interpreter, not everyone on the team has had a front row seat to the drama.

The Dodgers were in South Korea for the first-ever MLB Seoul Series when news broke that Ohtani's and personal friend Ippei Mizuhara apparently had over $4 million wired to his account to relieve gambling debts, immediately, alarm bells began to sound.

Subsequently, further reports indicated that Mizuhara had, in fact, stolen the funds from Shohei Ohtani, with the latter's legal team claiming their client had fallen victim to "massive fraud." Before the season even began, Ohtani had found himself imbued in a scandal of MVP proportions.

"For your viewing pleasure. Every Shohei Ohtani home run of 2024 so far" - MLB

The Dodgers played two games against the San Diego Padres and returned home, but the focus generated from the scandal has followed the 29 year-old throughout his entire tenure as a Dodger to date.

---

Shohei Ohtani has not let himself get distracted by Mizuhara affair

Although Shohei Ohtani had to deal with the loss of a friend, and a massive betrayal, the Dodgers star is keeping focused on delivering results. Having contributed three home runs and five RBIs over the course of his team's recent sweep of the Miami Marlins.

Emerging from this unorthodox mess as gracefully as he has speaks futher volumes about Ohtani's calibre as an athlete.