The past year or so has been pretty crazy for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani. After signing a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers in free agency, ahead of the 2024 campaign, Ohtani would go on to help his new squad take down the New York Yankees in the World Series.
Of course, before he even took the field for the Dodgers, Ohtani found himself involved in a federal gambling investigation thanks to his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara. An investigation showed that Mizuhara was in millions of dollars of debt to a bookmaker named Mathew Bowyer, who recently broke his silence on his involvement in this situation.
Ippei Mizuhara’s Bookie Opens Up on Gambling Investigation
Mizuhara and Ohtani have been acquaintances since 2013, when they both were members of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. When Ohtani made the jump to the majors and signed with the Los Angeles Angels in 2018, Mizuhara was hired by the team to be Ohtani’s personal interpreter.
Right after the start of the 2024 campaign, Mizuhara ended up being the target of an investigation due to his alleged gambling habits. Not only was Mizuhara indebted to his bookie, but he was also accused of stealing millions of dollars from Ohtani in order to fund his gambling addiction.
Mizuhara has since pleaded guilty to charges of bank fraud and submitting a false tax return, and he ended up getting sentenced to 57 months in prison. Recently, his bookie, Bowyer, was sentenced to a year in prison for operating the illegal sportsbook that Mizuhara was using. When discussing the situation, Bowyer revealed when he knew that he might be in trouble.
“The ‘Oh f***’ moment was when I found out that the wire transfer was not from Ippei Mizuhara. That was the ‘Holy s***’ moment,” Bowyer said in an interview with Tisha Thompson. “I got a phone call and the gentleman that received the wire transfer said, ‘Are you sitting down?’ And I said, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘I just received a $500,000 wire.’ I said, ‘OK, thank you, that’s great.’ He said, ‘Shohei Ohtani is the name on the account,’ and I just went, ‘What the f***?’”
Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers Attempting to Repeat as World Series Champions
Luke Hales/Getty ImagesShohei Ohtani once again looked dominant on the mound.
Ohtani has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the situation, but there’s no doubt it has had an impact on him. And yet, it hasn’t impacted his play on the field for the Dodgers, as he’s enjoyed another MVP-caliber campaign, hitting .278 with 45 home runs, 85 RBIs, and 17 stolen bases. He’s also made his return to the mound after not pitching at all in 2024, posting a 1-1 record with a 4.18 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 11 short starts.
Despite all the talent Los Angeles has at their disposal, the 2025 season has been a grind at times, thanks in large part to a slew of injuries the team has dealt with. However, their 77-57 record is still good for first place in the National League West division, and they will look to win their fifth-straight game when they open a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
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