By Diana Dasrath and Rebecca Cohen -
NBC News
Major League Baseball announced this Friday that they have launched an investigation following accusations involving the interpreter of Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers star, who this week has been at the center of a possible theft and sports betting scandal.
The MLB stated in a statement that the organization has been “gathering information since we learned of the allegations involving Shohei Ohtani and Ippei Mizuhara from the media.”
The MLB Investigations Department began a
“formal investigation process into the matter”
this Friday , according to the statement.
He did not provide more information about the investigation.
Ippei Mizuhara with Japanese baseball star Shohei Ohtani translates during an interview at Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, on February 3, 2024. Richard Vogel / AP file
Representatives for Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday about MLB's investigation.
An email sent to Mizuhara did not receive an immediate response.
Mizuhara was fired from his position with the Dodgers after Berk Brettler LLP, Ohtani's attorneys, indicated that the athlete
was the victim of a "massive theft"
in a case linked to sports betting.
“The Dodgers are aware of the media reports and are gathering details.
The team can confirm that the performer, Ippei Mizuhara, has been fired.
The team has no further comment at this time,” read a team statement released early Thursday.
The Los Angeles Times and ESPN first reported the scandal on Wednesday.
According to ESPN, the interpreter's dismissal occurred after questions from the media about his alleged links to illegal betting.
The allegations against Mizuhara focused specifically on wire transfers from Ohtani's account – totaling at least $4.5 million, made in at least nine payments of $500,000 – to a Southern California gambling operation located currently under federal investigation, and which was allegedly directed by Matthew Bowyer of Orange County, California, a person familiar with the interactions regarding Ohtani and Mizuhara told NBC News.
Those transfers were sent from Ohtani's account to a Bowyer associate, the person said.
Initially, the person indicated that Mizuhara had told Ohtani's personal team that he had been gambling and racking up a large amount of debt, prompting him to ask Ohtani to bail him out.
Mizuhara reportedly stated at the time that
Ohtani was upset and angry with him
because the baseball star hates gambling, but that he ultimately agreed to pay the debts as long as Mizuhara never bet again, according to the person familiar.
On Wednesday, after the Dodgers faced the San Diego Padres in a season opener in Seoul, the person claimed Mizuhara told the team to expect media reports about their bets.
The source indicated that Ohtani understood enough of Mizuhara's announcement to know it was referring to something about gambling and pressed his interpreter for more information.
As questions came in from the media, Mizuhara changed his story, expanded on the persona, and admitted to Ohtani's agent and representatives that the original account was a lie.
Instead, Mizuhara claimed that Ohtani had no knowledge of his gambling or debts.
According to the source, Mizuhara allegedly stole the enormous sum from Ohtani, and
authorized bank transfers from Ohtani's account
to the partner in the betting operation over a period of time last year, without Ohtani's involvement or knowledge.
The authorities have been officially informed, the source said, without specifying further.
At least four law enforcement agencies – including the Los Angeles Police Department, the Orange County Sheriff's Office, the Anaheim Police Department and the Newport Beach Police Department – told NBC News that they did not They have no record or information about Ohtani filing a police or crime report in locations linked to where he lives, plays, or has a registered business.
NBC News has contacted Mizuhara for comment on the allegations.
The couple met in Japan in 2013, when Mizuhara was working as an interpreter for the Hokkaidō Nippon-Ham Fighters of the Japanese Nippon professional baseball league.
Ohtani joined the team as a rookie in 2013, Nippon.com reported.
When Ohtani was signed by the Los Angeles Angels in 2017, he took Mizuhara with him as his personal performer.
Mizuhara
became more than just a performer for Ohtani
over the years, according to a person familiar with their interactions.
He was considered an old friend of Ohtani and served as access to the baseball star.
The Dodgers will face the St. Louis Cardinals in their next regular season game on March 28.