Statement from Shohei Ohtani regarding MLB investigation

Blake Williams/DodgerBlue.com

Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers entered the 2024 MLB season with expectations of winning or losing the World Series after the team spent more than a billion dollars in the offseason.

At the beginning of the season, the Dodgers and Ohtani were caught up in a betting scandal that centered on Ohtani and his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara.

Since then, the story has evolved. Both a federal investigation and one by MLB were announced and have now been completed. The federal investigation was the first to be completed, and it uncovered enough evidence to charge Mizuhara with bank fraud and tax fraud.

The MLB investigation was still ongoing in the background while the U.S. government completed its own investigation, but on Tuesday the case was officially closed.

The MLB agreed with the findings of the federal investigation and announced that it too was convinced that Ohtani was the victim of a theft and was in no way involved in sports betting with Mizuhara.

With Tuesday’s announcement, Ohtani is cleared of any wrongdoing in the eyes of several federal agencies and MLB, so the entire matter can now be resolved. The conclusion of both investigations has brought closure to Ohtani, and he now looks forward to turning his full attention to the season and helping the Dodgers win games.

“Now that the investigation is complete, this full admission of guilt has brought important closure to me and my family. I would like to sincerely thank the authorities for completing their thorough and effective investigation so quickly and uncovering all evidence.

This has been an exceptionally challenging time and so I am especially grateful to my support team – my family, my agent, my agency, my lawyers and advisors, and the entire Dodger organization who have given me unconditional support throughout the entire process.

“It’s time to close this chapter, move on and continue to focus on playing and winning games.”

Mizuhara’s formal guilty plea to the bank fraud and tax fraud charges could bring him up to 33 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for October 25, 2024, at 2 p.m. PT.

Shohei Ohtani couldn’t sleep because of the Ippei Mizuhara scandal

Ohtani has maintained his public privacy during the Ippei Mizuhara gambling scandal and seemed to be handling it as well as one could, but privately the situation caused him some distress when it first came to light.

It got to the point where he even had trouble sleeping because of all the thoughts going through his head. Ohtani’s problems improved when the truth came out and his name was cleared. His full vindication by the MLB and federal authorities will hopefully allow him to close this difficult chapter of his life.

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