Which MLB stars endorsed FTX? David Ortiz, Shohei Ohtani, and others named in lawsuits

While the fall of cryptocurrency brokerage firm FTX may go down as one of the biggest swindles of 21st century capitalism, there is also a considerable amount of irony in the story. Now, it appears as though the firm's contacts extended to the big leagues.

By now, nearly everyone has heard of the founder of FTX, Sam Bankman Fried. Fried, 31, is facing federal charges on counts of securities fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. Known for his "wiz-kid" persona, Fried lived in the Bahamas in a condo with his friends at the time of his extradition to the USA.

"Rules for thee... The Department of Justice will not pursue campaign finance charges against Sam Bankman-Fried." - Citizen Free Press

While the fall of Fried's firm has been well-documented, the related characters are still coming out of the woodwork. Bankman-Fried, who is a well-known baseball fan, contracted some of the game's biggest names to add an extra dash of credibility to his highly dubious operation.

In October 2021, FTX signed former Boston Red Sox big-shot David Ortiz to a multi-year ambassadorship. Although "Big Papi" no longer plays, he remains an active voice in baseball, and exactly the kind of guy that SBF wants batting for him.

Additionally, court documents revealed that the firm also contracted Los Angeles Angels superstar Shohei Ohtani to be an ambassador. According to the same sources, Ohtani was renumerated in crypto currency for putting his name next to SBF's company.

"BREAKING: Shohei Ohtani has signed an endorsement deal with crypto company FTX. In addition to being paid in Bitcoin, Ohtani will also take an equity stake in the company." - Joe Pompliano

While Fried never publicly endorsed a team, his company did sponsor the umpires in 2021 with a custom arm band that featured the logo of the organization on the sleeve of the ump shirts.

After it was discovered that the firm's sister company, Alameda had illegally taken on customer funds, Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas and extradited to the United States. Following a bail posting of $250 million, he has been allowed to stay at his parent's home in California, under house arrest while awaiting his trial.

FTX wide reach shows just how impactful their failure was

FTX posted a billion dollars in profit in 2021, which is nearly five times the New York Yankees' entire payroll. As such, SBF was able to influence people at the pinnacle of their field.

Innocent until proven guilty is a hallowed facet of a lawful democracy, but everyone will be paying very close attention to the trial, scheduled to begin in October.