How it went down for the beloved pitcher
In late March, Shohei Ohtani was cast into the limelight for the wrong reasons. The reason? His long-time friend and interpreter Ippei Mizuhara was fired by the Dodgers for allegedly stealing $4.5M from the pitcher to use for gambling. Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani's legal representatives made the damning allegations on Wednesday, March 20th that his interpreter committed a significant financial breach by wagering with an allegedly illicit bookmaker under federal scrutiny.
The alleged infraction was caught up and exposed after it was revealed that the FBI was investigating an individual called Bowyer for possible illegal offshore sports betting. Even though sports betting is legal in 38 out of the 50 states in the US, it is illegal in California where the pitcher is based and has played all his career after signing a 10-year, $700M deal with LA Dodgers.
MLB strictly prohibits betting on baseball including fantasy bets but allows betting on other sports according to their collective bargaining agreement. Mizuhara said he was aware of the clause but insists he did not bet on baseball.“illegal bets on any sport or event, including bets placed with illegal bookmakers or illegal offshore sports betting websites or applications” are specifically outlawed.
The scandal led the star to delete all images of his disgraced interpreter from his Instagram account in a bid to disassociate himself from the scandal that threatens to taint his name.
Ohtani reportedly doesn't bet, and the funds sent to Bowyer were intended to offset Mizuhara's losses that had occurred from his gambling. It was also said that Bowyer interacted directly with Mizuhara, who wagered on a variety of sports besides baseball and was believed to be acting on behalf of Ohtani.
MLB made its announcement two days after ESPN revealed that Ohtani's bank account had transferred over $4.5 million to a bookmaker under federal investigation, Mr. Matthew Boyer. The Dodgers removed Mizuhara as reporters started to wonder why Ohtani's name was associated with bookmaker Bowyer in the first place.
Ohtani is anticipated to stay on the Dodgers' active roster for the duration of the league's probe.
Whatever its details, the scandal, was both apparent and palpable. Fences stood in the place where photographers had formerly gathered to capture the arrival of team buses. They were unable to record player arrivals on Thursday due to security. Nobody gave a precise explanation. Really, nobody had to. The community waits for further developments.