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Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Muzuhara’s alleged gambling scandal hasn’t concluded. A thorough federal investigation revealed Mizuhara had reportedly taken nearly $16 million from Ohtani to cover his gambling debt, and he is now charged with bank felony fraud.
Shohei reportedly cooperated fully with the investigation and hasn’t been under any charges. However, this whole incident is pocking someone since the beginning. Former MLB player/manager Pete Rose seems to follow the case closely.
Rose took a jibe at Ohtani while signing for a fan in a fan meeting program.
“Sorry I bet on Baseball,” Rose wrote on a ball. “[Shohei] Ohtani is sorry also,” he wrote on another one.
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Rose was banned from the league due to betting on games. He was also denied entry into the Hall of Fame, which he appealed, but his requests were denied.
Rose is trying to compare himself to Ohtani, however, there's no case or charge against the Dodgers star, except for allegations.
Shohei Ohtani's alleged betting saga so far
During the “Seoul Series,” Shohei Ohtani’s then-interpreter Ippei Mizuhara’s gambling news reached the Los Angeles Dodgers front office. Mizuhara was fired immediately while MLB launched a formal investigation into the matter.
Mizuhara was subsequently interviewed by ESPN about the entire scandal. He reportedly claimed that Ohtani paid off his debt of nearly $4.5 million from his personal bank accounts in eight to nine installments.
However, a spokesperson on behalf of Ohtani contacted ESPN, urging them to not publish the story of Mizuhara as it contained false information and Ohtani wasn’t aware of anything.
Due to the graveness of the allegations, ESPN requested a formal statement that Ohtani’s attorney at Brek Berttler LLP law firm gave soon after, claiming Ohtani was a victim of a massive theft.
Later, Ohtani, through his new interpreter Will Iretron, gave a statement saying that neither has he gambled before nor told anyone to gamble on his behalf.
Mizuhara reportedly agreed to lie to ESPN and refused to say anything further on the matter. The federal investigation found more information related to the scandal, including Mizuhara’s personal conversations that linked him directly to the case.
As of now, Mizuhara allegedly surrendered himself to the authorities on the charge of stealing more than $16 million from Shohei Ohtani, and it is reported that he didn’t bet on baseball.
The investigations are still underway while Ohtani focuses on his game for the Dodgers.
