Source:
Jason
Armond
/
Getty
/
Shohei
Ohtani
Shohei
Ohtani
is
doubling
down
on
being
hoodwinked,
bamboozled,
and
led
astray
by
his
interpreter
in
this
ongoing
and
still
developing
gambling
scandal.
The
Los
Angeles
Dodgers’
$700
million
man,
Shohei
Ohtani,
wants
the
world
to
know
he
did
not
bet
on
baseball
or
any
other
sport
and
that
his
translator,
Ippei
Mizuhara,
lied
and
stole
more
than
$4
million
to
cover
his
gambling
debts.
Spotted
on
Yahoo!
Sports,
Ohtani
finally
broke
his
silence
with
a
nearly
12-minute
statement
on
the
matter
after
Mizuhara
was
fired
as
his
translator
following
accusations
he
stole
money
from
the
MLB
superstar
via
wire
transfers.
Per
Yahoo!
Sports:
“I
am
very
saddened
and
shocked
someone
I
trusted
has
done
this,”
Ohtani
said
through
an
interpreter
at
the
beginning
of
his
statement.
He
then
denied
being
involved
in
sports
gambling
in
any
form.
“I
never
bet
on
baseball
or
any
other
sports
or
never
have
asked
somebody
to
do
that
on
my
behalf,”
he
said.
“And
I
have
never
been
through
a
bookmaker
to
bet
on
sports.
…
“Up
until
a
couple
days
ago,
I
didn’t
know
that
this
was
happening.
…
In
conclusion,
Ippei
has
been
stealing
money
from
my
account
and
has
told
lies.”
Ohtani
also
denied
knowingly
paying
off
any
alleged
gambling
debts.
“To
the
representatives
in
my
camp,
Ippei
told
the
media
and
representatives
that
I,
on
behalf
of
a
friend,
paid
off
debt,”
he
said.
“Upon
further
questioning,
it
was
revealed
that
it
was
actually
in
fact
Ippei
who
was
in
debt
and
told
my
representatives
that
I
was
paying
off
those
debts.
“All
of
this
has
been
a
complete
lie.”
Shohei
Ohtani
Claims
He
Had
No
Idea
About
His
Interpretrer’s
Gambling
Issues
Ohtani
also
claims
that
Mizhura
was
telling
a
big
lie
when
he
told
the
Dodgers
organization
that
he
was
in
communication
with
Ohtani
about
the
incident.
The
slugger/pitcher
claims
he
first
learned
about
his
interpreter’s
gambling
issues
during
a
team
meeting
after
the
Dodgers
played
the
San
Diego
Padres
in
South
Korea.
Ohtani
claims
he
and
Mizhura
had
a
“one-on-one”
meeting
at
their
hotel.
“Up
until
that
team
meeting,
I
didn’t
know
that
Ippei
had
a
gambling
addiction
and
was
in
debt,”
Ohtani
said.
“Obviously,
I
never
agreed
to
pay
off
the
debt
or
make
payments
to
the
bookmaker.”
“And
it
was
revealed
to
me
during
that
meeting,
Ippei
admitted
he
was
sending
money
using
my
account
to
the
bookmaker,”
he
said.
“And
at
that
moment,
it
was
an
absurd
thing
that
was
happening,
and
I
contacted
my
representatives
at
that
point.”
People
Are
Still
Skeptical
Ohtani
is
adamant
he
did
not
bet
on
MLB
or
any
sports,
but
many
people
are
calling
it
a
cap
on
the
idea
that
he
had
no
idea
about
the
$4
million
wire
transfers.
ESPN
First
Take
contributor
and
sports
talk
radio
legend
Christopher
“Mad
Dog”
Russo
does
not
buy
what
Ohtani
is
selling
outright.
On
his
show,
he
believes
that
Ohtani’s
interpreter
stole
the
money
and
that
the
Dodgers’
superstar
is
guilty
of
being
a
“good
friend
and
some
poor
judgement.”
We
are
intrigued
to
see
how
this
situation
pans
out.
The
MLB
is
currently
investigating.
Until
then,
you
can
see
more
reactions
in
the
gallery
below.
