Shohei Ohtani denied having ever bet on sports Monday in his first public comments since it was revealed $4.5 million of bank transfers were sent from his account to an illegal bookmaking operation.
Ohtani’s longtime friend and interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, was fired last Wednesday after taking responsibility for the gambling debts, but there was still a lot of mystery behind what happened after Mizuhara issued two conflicting stories. Using a new interpreter, Ohtani shed a little more light on the situation with a prepared statement.
Though more questions remain after the press conference (Ohtani didn’t take questions), the Los Angeles Dodgers star tried to ease the minds of anyone concerned he was the one actually betting on sports. You can be the judge of whether these new details did the job.
Ohtani denied betting on baseball or any other sport
Not only did Ohtani deny having ever bet on sports, he also specifically said he’s never bet on baseball or used a bookmaker to bet on anything. He said he’s never asked anyone to bet on his behalf either.
He didn't know about the gambling inquiry until after the first game in South Korea
“Up until a couple days ago, I didn’t know this was happening,” Ohtani said.
He said reporters reached out to his representatives about his potential involvement in sports betting last weekend while the Dodgers were in South Korea, noting that Mizuhara never told him about the inquiry.
Ohtani said he didn’t learn about what was happening until after the first game in South Korea last Wednesday when Mizuhara addressed the team during a meeting in the clubhouse. Even then, Mizuhara spoke in English, so Ohtani said he didn’t have a one-on-one conversation until afterwards at the hotel.
Ohtani claims Mizuhara lied to the media, the Dodgers and Ohtani's representatives
When the news first broke about the gambling debt, Mizuhara was on the record having giving ESPN conflicting stories about what happened, the first of which involved Ohtani voluntarily transferring the funds to cover Mizuhara’s debts. He later backtracked, saying Ohtani had no knowledge of the gambling debt and didn’t transfer any money.
On Monday, Ohtani said Mizuhara initially told the two-way player’s representatives and the media that Ohtani had transferred the money on “behalf of friend,” leaving out that the money was for Mizuhara himself.
“Upon further questioning it was revealed that it was actually in fact Ippei who was in debt,” Ohtani said, calling Mizuhara’s account of events a lie.
Ohtani also said Mizuhara led the slugger’s representatives and the Dodgers to believe Mizuhara was in communication with Ohtani through the process when he wasn’t.
Ohtani says he didn't know about Mizuhara's gambling addiction
Ohtani said up until his one-on-one meeting with Mizuhara, he was unaware of a gambling addiction or that Mizuhara was in debt. Therefore, Ohtani said, he never agreed to make payments to a bookmaker.
Ohtani said it was during that one-on-one that Mizuhara admitted to using his accounts to send money to a bookmaker. Ohtani contacted his representatives directly from there, and that’s when the representatives, lawyers and Dodgers all learned Mizuhara had been lying to them.
Ohtani is letting authorities handle the matter
In line with a statement from his attorneys last week alleging a “massive theft,” Ohtani labeled the situtation as theft and fraud and said he’s letting the proper authorities handle it. He said he’s completely assistant in all investigations.
