As a brewing playing scandal has ensnared Los Angeles Dodgers famous person Shohei Ohtani, questions have arisen concerning the reliability of the story’s main narrator to date: Ohtani’s now former interpreter and finest good friend, Ippei Mizuhara. These questions have solely grown, with elevated scrutiny on Mizuhara revealing that key factors of his publicly obtainable biography seem like both exaggerated or inaccurate.
For years, the Los Angeles Angels media information lists Mizuhara as having graduated from the College of California, Riverside in 2007, and that he spent spring coaching in 2012 working for the New York Yankees as an interpreter for Japanese pitcher Hideki Okajima. Additionally, a number of information experiences famous that Mizuhara served as Okajima’s interpreter in 2010 with the Boston Crimson Sox — the place he reportedly obtained his first major-league alternative.
Nevertheless, as first reported by NBC Los Angeles, the college disputed the notion that Mizuhara had ever attended the college, a lot much less having graduated. “Our college information don’t present a pupil by the identify of Ippei Mizuhara having attended UC Riverside,” a college spokesman instructed The Athletic.
UC Riverside didn’t reply when requested if it was doable Mizuhara attended the college beneath a distinct identify, or if anybody with the same identify ever attended. Spokespeople representing Ohtani declined to remark when requested if that they had believed Mizuhara’s biography throughout his tenure with Ohtani.
In the meantime, a number of information experiences present that Okajima failed a bodily on Feb. 17, 2012, earlier than spring coaching, when he was launched by the Yankees. Mizuhara might have labored with Okajima earlier than the official begin of camp, throughout the month or so when gamers on minor-league offers would possibly arrive early to work out. However the Angels media information has acknowledged yearly since 2019 that Mizuhara “served as an interpreter for Hideki Okajima throughout Yankees Spring Coaching in 2012.”
Earlier this week, the Crimson Sox launched an announcement insisting that Mizuhara has by no means labored for the group.
“We’re reaching out to all of you due to experiences in varied retailers stating that Ippei Mizuhara labored for the Crimson Sox as an interpreter, which is wrong,” learn a message from the membership distributed to media members on Friday. “Mizuhara was by no means employed by the Boston Crimson Sox in any capability and was not an interpreter for Hideki Okajima throughout the pitcher’s time with the group. Please know that we’ve completely checked our recordsdata to make sure we’re offering correct data.”
Mizuhara and Okajima couldn’t be reached for remark.
Mizhuara’s connection to Okajima appears to have been exaggerated over time. A number of information experiences have linked Mizuhara to Okajima over totally different intervals. That features a Nippon.com story from 2021 that stated Mizuhara was Okajima’s interpreter throughout the 2010 season with the Crimson Sox. However along with the Crimson Sox’s denial, archives from the Boston Globe in April and Could 2010 identify Ryo Shinkawa as Okajima’s interpreter. The group’s media information from 2010 lists two individuals as group interpreters that season, however not Mizuhara.
Searches on two totally different information databases didn’t convey up outcomes that includes Mizuhara earlier than 2018, when Ohtani first signed with the Angels.
In devising a media information, the usual protocol requires belief between the media relations division and the remainder of the staff, in keeping with interviews with media relations staffers from different golf equipment, who requested anonymity to talk candidly. The media relations division doesn’t have the time to vet the resume claims of every worker, the staffers stated. A media relations staffer will typically ship a proposed biographic thumbnail for pre-approval to the worker, or ask the worker for biographical data in publishing the information.
Mizuhara was terminated from his place with the Dodgers on Wednesday after Ohtani’s representatives alleged that he stole not less than $4.5 million from the two-way famous person to cowl his personal playing losses. Mizuhara initially instructed ESPN on Tuesday that Ohtani had agreed to repay Mizuhara’s money owed, and was current when the cash was wired to Matt Bowyer, the alleged bookmaker at present beneath federal investigation. However quickly after Mizuhara spoke with ESPN, a spokesman for Ohtani recanted the account and stated that Ohtani had not been conscious of Mizuhara’s playing exercise.
The Related Press reported that the IRS has opened a felony investigation into Mizuhara. ESPN reported that Ohtani’s representatives have initiated a felony grievance in opposition to Mizuhara, however declined to state which company. Main League Baseball introduced on Friday that it opened a proper investigation into the state of affairs.
Till these current occasions, the 39-year-old Mizuhara had been probably the most outstanding of a small group of interpreters working with Asian gamers in Main League Baseball. He was seen as Ohtani’s right-hand man, at all times in conjunction with the two-way famous person, and he was one of the public-facing individuals within the sport.
— The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov, Andy McCullough and Brendan Kuty contributed to this story.
(Prime picture of Ippei Mizuhara: Ronald Martinez / Getty Photographs)