Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani is in the midst of a Cy Young season in 2026, but his tenure under the bright lights of Hollywood began in scandal.
In March 2024, the Dodgers fired interpreter Ippei Mizuhara after allegations of massive theft and illegal sports gambling surfaced during the team’s season-opening series in Seoul, South Korea.
On the ESPN 30 For 30 Podcast “The Betrayal of Shohei Ohtani” (Episode 5), Mizuhara can be heard impersonating Ohtani during a call to authorize a transfer of funds to Mathew Bowyer’s account in February 2022.
Bowyer is the Southern California bookmaker who was a central figure in the sports betting scandal. He received millions of Ohtani’s money via wire transfers stolen by Mizuhara.
“Who am I speaking with?” the Bank of America employee said.
“Shohei Ohtani,” Mizuhara replied.
“Thank you. How may I help you?” the Bank of America employee responded back.
“So I tried to log in to online banking, and it tells me that it’s not available to me at this time and try to call,” said Mizuhara.
“Can you tell me the name of the payee and the amount of the transaction, please?” the Bank of America employee said.
“It’s for $200,000,” Mizuhara said.
Mizuhara, who worked as Ohtani’s interpreter since his arrival to Major League Baseball in 2018, was caught with his hand in Ohtani’s cookie jar.
Only the first two episodes of the ESPN series will be released on Tuesday, July 28. The snippet of the Bank of America recording featuring Mizuhara is featured from the fifth episode of the 30 For 30 Podcast.
Ohtani was cleared of any betting or illegal gambling charges with the investigation finding that he was a victim of massive fraud by his former interpreter and friend, Mizuhara, who pleaded guilty to bank fraud and filing a false tax return.
Mizuhara was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison. MLB concluded its investigation in June 2024.
Three years later, Ohtani remains a global icon as the Dodgers pursue its third consecutive World Series title in 2026.
