Shohei Ohtani, Main League Baseball’s highest-paid participant, broke his silence Monday afternoon a couple of playing scandal that prompted his staff, the Los Angeles Dodgers, to fireside his interpreter final week.
In a ready assertion, via an interpreter, Ohtani mentioned, “I’m very saddened and shocked that somebody who I trusted has finished this.”
Monday’s press convention was the primary time Ohtani has confronted the media in individual for the reason that playing controversy surfaced involving his pal and Japanese interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, prompting investigations by Main League Baseball (MLB) and the Inside Income Service.
“I by no means wager on baseball or every other sports activities,” Ohtani continued. “I by no means requested someone to do this on my behalf and I’ve by no means went via a bookmaker to wager on sports activities.”
The 29-year-old pitching and home-run-hitting star, who signed a $700 million deal within the offseason to affix the Dodgers, claims he didn’t learn about Ippei’s playing till after a Dodgers recreation in Korea final week. “Up till a pair days in the past, I did not even know that this was taking place,” he mentioned.
The information of Mizuhara’s playing got here out throughout a staff assembly following a media inquiry about sports activities betting, Ohtani mentioned on the press convention.
Ohtani alleged, “Ippei has been stealing cash from my account and has informed lies.”
Following the information, Ohtani mentioned his legal professionals beneficial that authorities deal with that matter since allegations of theft and fraud are concerned.
To conclude his assertion, Ohtani mentioned, “To summarize how I am feeling proper now, I am simply past shocked. It is actually exhausting to verbalize how I’m feeling at this level.”
Ohtani addressed the media earlier than Monday night time’s spring coaching recreation towards his former staff, the Los Angeles Angels, at Dodger Stadium.
ABC Information wasn’t instantly capable of attain a consultant for Ippei.
MLB introduced it was investigating the state of affairs in a press release final week.
“Main League Baseball has been gathering data since we realized in regards to the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the information media,” MLB mentioned in a press release Friday. “Earlier right this moment, our Division of Investigations (DOI) started their formal course of investigating the matter.”
Mizuhara was fired final Wednesday by the Dodgers, in keeping with a short assertion from the staff. He had labored with the Dodgers as Ohtani’s interpreter after serving in the identical capability with the Angels. Ohtani and Mizuhara’s relationship dates again to 2013, when Ohtani performed for the Nippon-Ham Fighters of Japan’s Nippon Skilled Baseball League and Mizuhara was an interpreter for the staff.
Mizuhara’s termination got here after allegations of a “huge theft” tied to playing money owed to a Southern California bookmaking operation that’s underneath federal investigation, a number of sources informed ESPN.
“The Dodgers are conscious of media studies and are gathering data,” the Dodgers mentioned in Wednesday’s assertion. “The staff can verify that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara has been terminated. The staff has no additional remark at the moment.”
The assertion didn’t present a selected motive for Mizuhara’s termination.
Berk Brettler LLP, a regulation agency that represents Ohtani, mentioned in a press release Wednesday, “In the midst of responding to current media inquiries, we found that Shohei has been the sufferer of a large theft and we’re turning the matter over to the authorities.”
The assertion didn’t specify who allegedly stole the funds from Ohtani. Nonetheless, in keeping with ESPN, Mizuhara misplaced his job when reporters started asking questions surrounding no less than $4.5 million in wire transfers from Ohtani’s checking account to an unlawful bookmaking operation.
In an ESPN interview scheduled via Ohtani’s spokesperson final week, Mizuhara initially mentioned Ohtani had agreed to repay his playing money owed. However a day later, the spokesperson disavowed Mizuhara’s declare and issued the assertion claiming Ohtani had been the sufferer of “huge theft.”
Mizuhara mentioned Ohtani was by no means conscious of his playing and was not concerned.
“I would like everybody to know Shohei had zero involvement in betting,” Mizuhara informed ESPN. “I would like individuals to know I didn’t know this was unlawful. I realized my lesson the exhausting method. I’ll by no means do sports activities betting ever once more.”
ABC Information’ Meredith Deliso and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.