Posted on 04/12/2024 3:03:35 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Shohei Ohtani's interpreter Ippei Mizuhara is apparently nearing a plea bargain with federal agents. Released documents note no evidence that he gambled on baseball.
Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani, is in some big trouble. He was accused of and is reportedly preparing to plead guilty to stealing money from the two-time MVP in order to cover his gambling debts, and it turns out, it's worse than we all thought.
It was reported on Thursday that Mizuhara transferred more than $16 million from Ohtani's bank account, far more than the $4.5 million that was initially reported.
One question that everyone was wondering was did Mizuhara bet on baseball. That'd make an already bad situation even worse. It turns out, according to an affidavit, Mizuhara appears to be in the clear there.
Ippei Mizuhara appears to have not bet on baseball after all
While Mizuhara did confess to betting, he emphatically denied betting on baseball. If Ohtani was at all involved, that could've been a very serious situation.
Ippei Mizuhara told ESPN he bet on international soccer, the NBA, the NFL and college football, saying, “I never bet on baseball. That’s 100 percent. I knew that rule.”
It turns out that Mizuhara, a man who told countless lies to a player who trusted him, was telling the truth in this circumstance. He did not bet on baseball as an FBI agent wrote in an affidavit that "records do not reflect any bets on baseball games."
Mizuhara not betting on baseball, unlike Pete Rose, shows that games Ohtani has appeared in have not been impacted by betting, which is definitely important.
While this is a positive development, Mizuhara is still in huge trouble. He was charged with bank fraud on Thursday, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
I find it impossible to believe that the guy was not betting on baseball.
Degenerate gamblers do not care about consequences.
They care about being in action and chasing which generally leads to them betting on what they think they know the best.
What if a real investigation already occurred and they’re using it over the head of MLB?
I tend to think that he was not involved despite the circumstances.
People with gambling problems go to insane lengths to feed their habits.
What Nick posted regarding the banking is true but if anyone is going to defeat the system it’s the guy with a gambling problem.
That said, I wouldn’t bet on it. LOL
A guy with over a 100 million dollars wouldn’t get any kicks out of winning a sporting bet of any kind anyway, because there would be no thrill in winning when you don’t need any money. It would be chump change to him no matter how large the bet. Win or lose there’s no risk at all. Now, betting on baseball would be the dumbest, most risky thing the guy could ever do. He’s not that stupid to risk everything on stupid gambling.
I tend to agree with you as it just seems too insane.
The kick is the action and being above the rules.
Wealthy people steal.
Bookies don’t usually allow these kind of tabs regardless of financial wherewithal as they draw scrutiny.
Bookies want balanced action to collect the tax. It seems very doubtful that this guy had someone else betting the other side for similar amounts.
The bookie may have been in cahoots with the law.
I believe the interpreter and/or people connected to him besides Ohtani have a real gambling problem.
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