Shohei Ohtani holds first news conference on gambling allegations against interpreter
Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani addressed the media on Monday afternoon for the first time since the team fired his interpreter Ippei Mizuhara amid gambling allegations.
“I am very sad and shocked that someone who I trusted has done this,” Ohtani said through an interpreter.
He vehemently denied agreeing to pay off Mizuhara’s gambling debt and betting on baseball or any other sports.
“I never bet on baseball or any sports or never have asked somebody to do it on my behalf,” Ohtani said. “I have never went through a bookmaker to bet on sports.”
The MLB opened a formal investigation after the Dodgers fired Mizuhara amid the allegations. The interpreter is accused of stealing at least $4.5 million from Ohtani’s personal bank account. Mizuhara had worked as Ohtani’s interpreter since 2017, before Ohtani joined the Los Angeles Angels, his first team in the MLB. Mizuhara’s relationship with the two-way star has been well documented during Ohtani’s tenure with the Angels, with whom he played for six seasons before signing a 10-year, $700 million mega-deal with the Dodgers.
Mizuhara told ESPN that Ohtani was aware of the gambling debts, and that while disappointed, he had agreed to pay them off. However, a spokesperson for Ohtani told ESPN that the player was not in fact aware of the gambling.
“Ippei has been stealing money from my accounts and has been telling lies,” Ohtani said.
