On December 9, 2023, Major League Baseball (MLB) Star, Shohei Ohtani, signed a 10 year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles (LA) Dodgers. The deal is officially the biggest sports contract signed in history. But just around the time the three-time All Star and two-time AL MVP finally stepped up to the plate as a Dodger in the Seoul Series, Ohtani found himself in the middle of one of pro-baseball’s biggest scandals.
On March 20, 2024, as the MLB season was about to kick off, the Dodgers fired Ohtani’s friend and now former interpreter and training partner Ippei Mizuhara due to theft and gambling allegations. The accusations arose after it was reported that $4.5 million were sent to a bookmaking operation from Ohtani’s bank account. As the investigation continued to unfold, Mizuhara was found guilty, and subsequent rumors emerged as to whether or not Ohtani was somehow involved in Mizuhara’s illegal gambling. The media heard nothing from the MLB Star and his representatives’ scrambling efforts to present him as not being involved only created more confusion.
Five days after the controversy began, Ohtani finally broke the silence and firmly denied any gambling activity, stating “I never bet on any other sports or never have asked somebody to do it on my behalf and I have never gone through a bookmaker to bet on sports.” Ohtani claimed that this was a matter of longtime “theft and fraud” on his former interpreter’s part, whom he had known ever since his MLB debut in 2018 He said, “I’m very saddened and shocked that someone who I’ve trusted has done this.” Despite his claims, the question of how such a large theft could go unnoticed for so long remains unanswered.
As of most recently, Ohtani was cleared in federal investigations and found a victim of massive theft and fraud, while Ippei Mizuhara is currently facing federal charges. However, Ohtani’s potential role in this scandal has challenged the public’s understanding of one of baseball’s biggest superstars. Ohtani is without a doubt one of America’s top favorite athletes to play the game of baseball. Among fans, those who know Ohtani are likely to say that he is their favorite player. In fact, the two-time American League MVP has more followers on Instagram than any other MLB star.
However, Ohtani has emerged from the situation mostly unscathed, and continues to shine this MLB season. On April 3, he hit his first home-run as a Dodger. As of now, it’s Sho-time for Los Angeles.
